OBJECTIVES: Our aim was to evaluate restenosis rate of drug-eluting stents (DES) in patients with and without diabetes mellitus (DM) in a real-world setting. BACKGROUND: DES seem less effective in patients with DM. METHODS: The SCAAR (Swedish Coronary Angiography and Angioplasty Registry) includes all patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention in ...

We sought to assess the safety and efficacy of the novel VESTAsync-eluting stent (MIV Therapeutics, Atlanta, Georgia) combining a stainless steel platform with a nanothin-microporous hydroxyapatite surface coating impregnated with a polymer-free low-dose of sirolimus (55 microg). Durable polymers in first-generation drug-eluting stents (DES) have been linked to local inflammatory ...

OBJECT: Although angioplasty and stent placement for vertebral artery (VA)-origin stenosis have been performed using endovascular techniques, a high likelihood of restenosis has been observed in the long term. Therefore, the authors assessed the long-term clinical and angiographic outcomes in patients after VA-subclavian artery (SA) transposition. METHODS: Thirty-six patients (31 ...

BACKGROUND: Recent data suggest a clinical benefit with the systematic use of thrombus aspiration (TA) for the treatment of ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Nevertheless, the impact of TA as a treatment strategy for stent thrombosis (ST) is unknown. This study aimed to analyze the impact of TA use for the ...

BACKGROUND: The optimal duration of clopidogrel use for prevention of stent thrombosis with drug-eluting stent (DES) use is uncertain. Our objective was to determine whether the planned duration of clopidogrel at the time of percutaneous coronary intervention affected patient outcomes. METHODS: We analyzed data from 2,980 patients who underwent percutaneous ...

AIMS: To conduct a clinical registry of consecutive "real world" patients treated using the PRO-Kinetic stent at Rabin Medical Centre between January 2006 and March 2008. METHODS AND RESULTS: Our study included 515 consecutive patients treated for 540 lesions. We had a 100% follow-up rate at six months. The patients' ...

The aim of this study was to evaluate long-term clinical events in patients treated with titanium-nitride-oxide-coated bio-active stents (BAS) and paclitaxel-eluting stents (PES) in routine clinical practice. All patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) were eligible for this single-centre registry between May 2003 and November 2004. The primary end point ...

BACKGROUND: Percutaneous coronary intervention for hemodialysis patients has been hampered by the high rate of adverse cardiac events. Our aim was to investigate whether sirolimus-eluting stents (SESs) improve clinical outcomes of hemodialysis patients compared with bare-metal stents (BMSs). STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective study. SETTING & PARTICIPANTS: 123 consecutive patients on hemodialysis ...

AIMS: The aim of this analysis was to examine the influence of different in-cath-lab antiplatelet regimens for the primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) on all-cause mortality. METHODS AND RESULTS: The study group consisted of 7193 patients (pts) undergoing primary PCI in 38 centres in 2003 in Poland. All patients received ...

BACKGROUND: There is limited information about optimal management of drug-eluting stent (DES) restenosis. This study evaluated the incidences of re-restenosis and re-target lesion revascularization (TLR) after the treatment of sirolimus-eluting stent (SES) restenosis. METHODS AND RESULTS: A total of 102 lesions in 101 patients who underwent TLR for SES restenosis ...

Randomised trials using drug-eluting stents (DES) in ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) have shown mixed results, and excluded patients at the highest risk of adverse outcomes. We aimed to determine the real world clinical outcomes of DES and compare these with bare-metal stents (BMS) in an unrestricted observational study of ...

OBJECTIVES: We sought to evaluate clinical and angiographic outcomes of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in patients receiving both bare-metal stents (BMS) and drug-eluting stents (DES). BACKGROUND: Few data are available about the safety and efficacy of the practice namely called "hybrid PCI". METHODS: One hundred and eighty-six patients, 502 de ...

BACKGROUND: The use of stents has become common in subjects over 75 years of age, but choosing the best type of stent still remains difficult. Our objective was to compare safety and clinical benefits of drug-eluting stent (DES) and bare-metal stent (BMS) at 1 year in this population. METHODS: We ...

BACKGROUND: With the aim of reducing restenosis after percutaneous coronary intervention with bare-metal stents (BMSs) for the treatment of ischemic heart disease, drug-eluting stents (DESs) were introduced in the field of percutaneous coronary intervention in 2002. However, the higher cost of DES in comparison with BMS made it necessary to ...

BACKGROUND: Concern regarding the rate of delayed acute stent thrombosis associated with drug-eluting stent (DES) treatment has resulted in upward revision of the advised duration of dual antiplatelet therapy after DES implantation by both European and United States guideline writing committees. In fact, the corroboration of an increased rate of ...

Our aim was to assess the incidence of all-cause mortality in patients with anemia undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) receiving drug-eluting stents (DES) or bare-metal stents (BMS). Anemia has been associated with poor clinical outcomes in patients undergoing PCI. However, it is unknown whether stent selection (DES or BMS) has ...

BACKGROUND: Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in patients with a high thrombus burden is a demanding clinical situation, associated with impaired clinical outcomes. Mechanical and pharmacological management of coronary thrombosis has been shown to effectively remove a variable fraction of intracoronary thrombus. A large inter-patient variability is often observed, and large ...

OBJECTIVE: To compare the effect of intracoronary adenosine and isosorbide dinitrate (ISDN) on no-reflow/slow flow during high-speed rotational atherectomy (HSRA) in patients with complex coronary artery disease (CAD). METHODS AND RESULTS: Medical records from consecutive patients diagnosed with complex CAD between November 2002 and March 2006 who underwent HSRA at ...

PURPOSE: To evaluate the feasibility and preliminary results of using paclitaxel-eluting stents for angioplasty and to treat symptomatic atherosclerotic ostial vertebral artery (VA) stenosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Institutional review board approval and written informed consent were obtained for this prospective study. Nine men and one woman (average age, 65.9 years ...

BACKGROUND: The long-term incidence of stent thrombosis (ST) and complications after sirolimus-eluting stents (SES) implantation is still a matter of debate. METHOD: We conducted a systematic follow-up on the day of their 5-year SES implantation anniversary, in a series of consecutive real-world patients treated with a SES. The use of ...

OBJECTIVES: This study sought to assess the safety and performance of the Axxess (Devax Inc., Lake Forest, California) self-expanding drug-eluting stent in coronary bifurcation lesions. BACKGROUND: Percutaneous treatment of coronary bifurcations is a predictor of adverse late outcomes, in part because of the lack of dedicated devices. METHODS: Patients with ...

BACKGROUND: Recent studies have shown that thiazolidinediones reduce neointimal hyperplasia after bare metal stent (BMS) implantation, but this drug group sometimes cause fluid retention that may lead to heart failure. OBJECTIVES: To examine the safety and efficacy of pioglitazone in patients with ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) treated with primary ...

BACKGROUND: Single nucleotide polymorphisms of vitamin K epoxide reductase complex subunit 1 (VKORC1) was reported to have association with arterial vascular disease. We investigated whether single nucleotide polymorphism of VKORC1 +2255 is associated with clinical outcomes among patients who underwent drug-eluting stent (DES) implantation. METHODS: We prospectively collected genomic DNA ...

BACKGROUND: Although overlapping sirolimus-eluting stents are often used in long lesions during percutaneous coronary intervention, it was not clear how intimal hyperplasia at the overlapping segments compares with that of single-layer sirolimus-eluting stents. METHODS: Optical coherence tomography (OCT) examinations were performed on 22 patients in whom overlapping sirolimus-eluting stents (SESs) ...

BACKGROUND: There are limited data on the efficacy of drug-eluting stents (DES) for treatment of chronic total occlusions (CTO). The aim of the study was to evaluate the long-term clinical outcomes of DES implantation for CTO compared with bare-metal stent (BMS) implantation. METHODS: Between June 1995 and December 2006, a ...

BACKGROUND: Several clinical trials have shown that sirolimus-eluting stents significantly reduce the risk of restenosis after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). The FIREBIRD stent (coated with durable polymer) and the EXCEL stent (coated with bioabsorbable polymer) are two different types of sirolimus-eluting stents made in China; both have been approved for ...

BACKGROUND: Drug-eluting stents (DES) have revolutionized the field of interventional cardiology by dramatically improving clinical and angiographic outcomes. Patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) are associated with an increased risk of adverse clinical outcomes after a percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Available information on the efficacy and safety of DES and bare ...

BACKGROUND: Lesions at coronary bifurcations always are a big challenge for interventionists even with the advent of drug eluting stents (DES). Even as more clinical trials are published, operators still can not confirm that one strategy is more efficient than another. Selection of patients and short term follow-up contribute to ...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Drug-eluting stents have been shown to reduce the incidence of restenosis and target vessel revascularization (TVR) compared with bare metal stents (BMSs); however, the long-term efficacy of sirolimus-eluting stent (SES) implantation in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) has not been well established. We have investigated the ...

AIMS: To determine the effect of intravenous administration of nicorandil on slow coronary flow (SCF) phenomenon in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). METHODS AND RESULTS: In a preliminary study, 6 mg of nicorandil showed optimal efficacy for vasodilatation without causing significant haemodynamic instability. In the main study, a total ...

AIMS: To compare long-term clinical outcome following drug-eluting stents (DES) or bare-metal stents (BMS) implantation on lesions located at the ostium or the shaft of the left main in a large real-world population. The advent of DES decreased the risk of unprotected left main coronary artery (ULMCA) restenosis when compared ...

The aim of this study was to compare 3-year cumulative outcomes to landmark second- and third-year outcomes with the routine use of drug-eluting stents (DES) (>75% "off-label") with a comparable group treated with bare-metal stents (BMS). Long-term safety concerns after "off-label" DES use persist, despite recent 2-year data showing comparable ...

AIMS: To assess the long-term safety and efficacy of the paclitaxel-eluting TAXUS moderate-release (MR) investigation-only stent for the treatment of long, complex coronary artery lesions. METHODS AND RESULTS: TAXUS VI was a prospective, double-blind, multicentre trial wherein 446 patients were randomised between a TAXUS Express MR stent and an uncoated ...

AIMS: There is no mention in the current "appropriateness criteria for CTCA" of the need of CTCA investigation prior to an attempt at recanalisation of a CTO. To define better the role of CTCA in the treatment of patients with CTOs, we performed CTCA in a consecutive cohort of eligible ...

BACKGROUND: Although unprotected left main coronary artery disease is considered by contemporary guidelines to be an indication for surgery, percutaneous coronary intervention may be necessary in patients at high surgical risk. OBJECTIVES: To assess the outcome of angioplasty in the treatment of unprotected LMCA disease. METHODS: Angiographic and clinical data ...

AIMS: To determine whether repeat revascularisation (RR) in diabetic patients treated with prior drug-eluting stents (DES) is the result of either DES restenosis or native progression of atherosclerotic disease in the coronary vasculature, and to evaluate the impact of atherosclerotic disease progression on the midterm clinical outcome. METHODS AND RESULTS: ...

This retrospective study sought to assess the clinical and angiographic long-term outcome after implanting drug-eluting stents in bifurcation lesions with the T-provisional (T-prov) technique and mini-crush (MC) technique. The best option on the treatment of coronary bifurcation lesions is a subject of considerable debate. However, recent evidence suggests that bifurcation ...

AIMS: Drug-eluting stents (DES) have never been sufficiently studied in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). The latter are considered as a high-risk population with uncertainty over the optimal antithrombotic therapy strategy to prevent stroke, stent thrombosis, and recurrent cardiac ischaemia, balanced against the high risk of haemorrhage. The aim of ...

OBJECTIVES: We sought to determine the occurrence, predictors, and prognostic impact of post-percutaneous coronary intervention (post-PCI) thrombocytopenia on an unselected real-world patient population. Background: Thrombocytopenia after PCI has been shown to portend worse prognosis in clinical trials. The significance of post-PCI thrombocytopenia has not previously been examined outside the clinical ...

BACKGROUND: Bifurcation angles may have an impact on the clinical outcomes of crush stenting. We sought to compare high (> or = 60 degrees ) with low (< 60 degrees ) bifurcation angle in patients who underwent either classical or double kissing (DK) crush stenting for bifurcation lesions from the ...

Endovascular therapy for symptomatic atherosclerotic renal artery stenosis (ARAS) is common but is associated with a significant restenosis rate. This study evaluates the outcomes of percutaneous endoluminal therapy for symptomatic restenosis (>50% on angiography) after renal intervention. We performed a retrospective analysis of records from patients who underwent endovascular intervention ...

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) has been shown to stimulate angiogenesis and myocardial perfusion. The short-term safety of VEGF gene therapy is excellent. However, there are only limited results regarding the long-term effects. The Kuopio Angiogenesis Trial (KAT) studied the efficiency and short-term safety of the local VEGF-A(165) gene transfer ...

BACKGROUND: Early management of patients with patent infarct-related artery (IRA) and optimal ST resolution in ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) has never been assessed. We compared immediate vs delayed PCI in these patients. METHODS: Matched comparison of immediate vs delayed (24 h) PCI in STEMI patients presenting with patent IRA, ...

BACKGROUND: Recent concerns have emerged on the potential higher risk of stent thrombosis after DES implantation, that might be even more pronounced among STEMI patients. The aim of the current study was to perform a meta-analysis to evaluate the benefits and safety of Sirolimus-Eluting Stent (SES) as compared to BMS ...

AIMS: Several studies have demonstrated that the mutant *2 allele of the CYP2C19 681G>A loss-of-function polymorphism is associated with diminished metabolization of clopidogrel into its active thiol metabolite and an attenuated platelet response to clopidogrel treatment. It is not known whether patients carrying the mutant CYP2C19*2 allele have a higher ...

BACKGROUND: Insufficient intake of selenium (Se) is common in many regions, and can contribute to increased susceptibility to and prolonged recovery from infectious diseases. OBJECTIVE: To determine the effect of Se administration in decreasing the severity and prevalence of footrot in sheep. ANIMALS: Thirty-eight footrot-affected and 19 nonaffected sheep from ...

PURPOSE: We examined the importance of prolonged inflation time for optimal sirolimus-eluting stent (SES) or paclitaxel-eluting stent (PES) expansion. METHODS: Eighty-one de novo lesions deployed single SES or PES between April 2007 and March 2008 were divided into four groups; group 1: 21 SES deployed at 20 atm x 60 ...

BACKGROUND: Several randomized trials and registries have shown a reduction of restenosis after coronary angioplasty with drug-eluting stents (DESs) compared with bare metal stents (BMSs). However, cost-efficacy analysis and long-term outcome of DESs compared to BMSs deserve further assessment. Moreover, concern has been raised regarding adverse clinical events occurring late ...

BACKGROUND: Data on effectiveness and safety following the implantation of very long segments of drug-eluting stents (DES) are lacking. AIM: To describe our experience of consecutive patients undergoing implantation of very long segments of DES (> 50 mm) in de novo coronary lesions. METHODS: We evaluated major in-hospital complications, target ...

BACKGROUND: The optimal management of patients on oral anticoagulation (OAC) undergoing coronary stenting (PCI-S) is currently undefined. Available evidence suggests that triple therapy of OAC, aspirin and clopidogrel is the most effective, though associated with a relevant incidence of major bleeding. Nearly all data, however, derive from small-size, retrospective studies ...