ABSTRACT
Emergency percutaneous coronary intervention, together with the ongoing evolution of interventional cardiology techniques and the development of new anti-platelet agents, has dramatically altered the management of acute myocardial infarction and unstable angina pectoris. This chapter examines the indications for cardiac catheterisation, preparation of the coronary care patient prior to angiography or structural heart disease intervention, potential complications of cardiac catheterisation procedures and the management of patients on return to the coronary care unit after intervention for coronary or structural heart disease.
