Thiruvananthapuram | The advancements in catheter-based coronary interventions are significantly expanding treatment options for patients with completely blocked heart arteries who were previously considered unsuitable for such procedures, experts said at an international cardiology summit here.

The observations were made at the inauguration of the 12th Live Summit of the Indo-Japanese CTO Club (IJCTO 2026) held here on Friday, according to a statement.

Inaugurating the three-day conference, Dr A B Mehta, senior interventional cardiologist at Jaslok Hospital, Mumbai, said the treatment of Chronic Total Occlusions (CTO) has undergone a major transformation over the past decade.

"Patients who were once referred directly for bypass surgery or left untreated because of procedural complexity can now be treated successfully using advanced catheter-based techniques," he said.

Improvements in imaging, guidewire technology and procedural strategies have significantly enhanced both success rates and patient safety, he said.

Organising Secretary and Course Director Dr N Prathap Kumar said rapid advances in guidewire systems, specialised microcatheters, intravascular imaging and cardiac CT-based planning were enabling physicians to perform increasingly complex procedures with greater precision and improved outcomes.

He said advanced imaging technologies and specialised procedural strategies were helping cardiologists successfully treat heavily calcified blockages, long-standing coronary occlusions, patients with previous bypass surgery and even cases where earlier interventions had failed.

A major highlight of the summit was the live transmission of 15 complex coronary interventions from leading cardiac centres in India, Japan, Europe and the United States. The programme included six cases from India, five from Japan, three from Europe and one from the United States, with three Indian cases being transmitted from Meditrina Hospital in Kollam in the state.

More than 800 cardiologists, interventional specialists, fellows and trainees from the country and abroad are participating in the three-day summit, organisers said in a statement.