About the PCI & Interventions question bank
Percutaneous coronary intervention is where the RCIS becomes procedural. You are expected to know the hardware — guides, wires, balloons, stents, atherectomy devices — and to know what each one is for, what can go wrong with it, and what the team does when it does.
This bank works through case flow: lesion assessment, selecting the approach, deploying the device, judging the result, and managing the complication. It also covers the adjunct technologies the exam increasingly tests, from FFR and intravascular imaging to mechanical circulatory support.
What this bank covers
- Guide catheters, guidewires, balloons, and stent systems
- Drug-eluting versus bare-metal stents and stent thrombosis
- Rotational and orbital atherectomy, cutting balloons, and lesion preparation
- FFR, iFR, IVUS, and OCT — what each measures and when it is used
- Coronary dissection, perforation, and no-reflow
- Acute stent thrombosis versus restenosis
- Intra-aortic balloon pump and mechanical circulatory support
- Primary PCI in STEMI and door-to-balloon considerations
How to use it
- For every device, learn its one characteristic complication. That single association answers a surprising share of the questions.
- Know the FFR cut-off and what it means clinically — it is a favourite.
- Complication questions almost always want the immediate action, not the eventual one. Read the stem for what is being asked.
Frequently asked questions
What FFR value indicates a haemodynamically significant lesion?
An FFR of 0.80 or below is generally taken as significant and supports revascularisation; above 0.80 the lesion is usually managed medically.
What is no-reflow and how is it treated?
No-reflow is inadequate myocardial perfusion despite a patent epicardial artery, caused by microvascular obstruction. It is treated with intracoronary vasodilators such as adenosine, nicardipine, or verapamil.
How does the intra-aortic balloon pump help?
It inflates in diastole to raise coronary perfusion pressure and deflates just before systole to reduce afterload, lowering myocardial oxygen demand. Correct timing to the cardiac cycle is what makes it work — and is what the exam tests.