Radiographic contrast agents, or contrast media (CM) are compounds that are injected during coronary angiography to render intravascular structures visible. The issues surrounding CM selection extend beyond coronary visualization and include consideration of all the properties, potential adverse effects, and outcomes from comparative clinical trials. These agents have been associated with deleterious and beneficial outcomes during percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI), and have numerous properties which distinguish one from another. This article is intended to be a focused review of available CM for use during PCI (particularly high-risk subsets), including their structure and properties, utility in various clinical settings in which PCI is performed, and the relationship to adverse events.

All authors: Lloyd W. Klein MD, FSCAI; Mark W. Sheldon MD, FSCAI; Jeffrey Brinker MD, FSCAI; Timothy A. Mixon MD, FSCAI; Kimberly Skelding MD, FSCAI; Adam O. Strunk MD, FSCAI; Carl L. Tommaso MD, FSCAI; Bonnie Weiner MD, FSCAI; Steven R. Bailey MD, FSCAI; Barry Uretsky MD, FSCAI; Morton Kern MD, FSCAI; Warren Laskey MD, FSCAI