EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Cardiologists undertaking percutaneous coronary interven-tion (PCI) are excited by the combination of patient and physician satisfaction and technological advance occurring on the background of the necessary manual dexterity. Progress and applicability of percutaneous techniques since their inception in 1977 have been remarkable; a sound evidence base coupled with the enthusiasm and ingenuity of the medical device industry has resulted in a sea change in the treatment of coronary heart disease (CHD), which continues to evolve at breakneck speed. This is the third set of guidelines produced by the British Cardiovascular Intervention Society and the British Cardiac Society.1 2 Following the last set of guidelines published in 2000, we have seen PCI activity in the UK increase from 33 652 to 62 780 (87 % in four years) such that the PCI t