Contemporary Drug-Eluting Stent Platforms: Design, Safety, and Clinical Efficacy

Sirolimus- vs Paclitaxel-Coated Balloon for the Treatment of Coronary In-Stent Restenosis: The SIBLINT-ISR Randomized Trial

BACKGROUND

The use of drug-coated balloons is a well-established strategy for the management of coronary vessels. However, head-to-head comparisons of sirolimus-coated balloons (SCBs) and paclitaxel-coated balloons (PCBs) for treating in-stent restenosis (ISR) are currently limited.

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this randomized, controlled trial (SIBLINT-ISR [Sirolimus-Coated Balloon Versus Paclitaxel-Coated Balloon for the Treatment of Coronary In-Stent Restenosis]) was to compare a novel SCB with a PCB for the treatment of ISR.

METHODS

In this prospective, assessor-blinded, controlled trial, patients with eligible ISR lesions were randomized 1:1 to treatment with either an SCB (SeQuent SCB, B. Braun Melsungen; 4 μg/mm2) or a PCB (SeQuent Please NEO, B. Braun Melsungen; 3 μg/mm2). The primary endpoint was noninferiority for 9-month angiographic in-segment late lumen loss (LLL). The main secondary endpoints were procedural success, target lesion restenosis rate, and target lesion failure (cardiac death, target vessel myocardial infarction, or revascularization) at 12 months.

RESULTS

A total of 258 patients with 285 lesions at 16 sites were randomly assigned to the SCB (n = 130) and PCB (n = 128) groups. At 9 months, the difference in the primary endpoint of in-segment LLL between the SCB group (0.37 ± 0.48 mm) and the PCB group (0.30 ± 0.38 mm) was 0.07 mm (95% CI: -0.05 to 0.19 mm), demonstrating noninferiority of the SCB to the PCB in terms of in-segment LLL, with a noninferiority margin of 0.20 mm (P for noninferiority < 0.0001). There were no significant differences in 12-month clinical outcomes between the SCB and PCB groups.

CONCLUSIONS

In this study, a novel SCB was found to be noninferior to a PCB in terms of in-segment LLL at 9 months in treating patients with ISR. (Sirolimus-Coated Balloon Versus Paclitaxel-Coated Balloon for the Treatment of Coronary In-Stent Restenosis [SIBLINT ISR]; NCT04240444).

Coatings for Cardiovascular Stents-An Up-to-Date Review

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) increasingly burden health systems and patients worldwide, necessitating the improved awareness of current treatment possibilities and the development of more efficient therapeutic strategies. When plaque deposits narrow the arteries, the standard of care implies the insertion of a stent at the lesion site. The most promising development in cardiovascular stents has been the release of medications from these stents. However, the use of drug-eluting stents (DESs) is still challenged by in-stent restenosis occurrence. DESs' long-term clinical success depends on several parameters, including the degradability of the polymers, drug release profiles, stent platforms, coating polymers, and the metals and their alloys that are employed as metal frames in the stents. Thus, it is critical to investigate new approaches to optimize the most suitable DESs to solve problems with the inflammatory response, delayed endothelialization, and sub-acute stent thrombosis. As certain advancements have been reported in the literature, this review aims to present the latest updates in the coatings field for cardiovascular stents. Specifically, there are described various organic (e.g., synthetic and natural polymer-based coatings, stents coated directly with drugs, and coatings containing endothelial cells) and inorganic (e.g., metallic and nonmetallic materials) stent coating options, aiming to create an updated framework that would serve as an inception point for future research.

Effectiveness and Safety of Contemporary Drug-Eluting Stents in Patients With Diabetes Mellitus

BACKGROUND

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a well-known risk factor for adverse cardiovascular events in patients receiving percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Limited data are available on the relative performance of different types of contemporary drug-eluting stents (DES) for diabetic patients.

OBJECTIVES

The authors investigated the effectiveness and safety profiles of several contemporary DES in patients with DM in a "real-world" clinical setting.

METHODS

Among 24,516 patients enrolled in a multicenter, prospective registry, 7,823 patients with DM were treated with 4 contemporary DES: 2,877 with a cobalt chromium everolimus-eluting stent (EES), 789 with a biodegradable polymer biolimus-eluting stent, 2,286 with a platinum chromium-EES, and 1,871 with a Resolute zotarolimus-eluting stent. The primary outcome was target vessel failure (TVF) (a composite of cardiac death, target vessel myocardial infarction, and target vessel revascularization).

RESULTS

The median follow-up duration was 2.9 years. Observed 3-year rates of TVF were not significantly different according to different DES types. On multigroup propensity-score analysis, the adjusted HRs for TVF were similar in between-group comparisons: biodegradable polymer biolimus-eluting stent (HR: 0.94; 95% CI: 0.76-1.16; P = 0.57), platinum chromium-EES (HR: 0.94; 95% CI: 0.81-1.09; P = 0.41), and Resolute zotarolimus-eluting stent (HR: 1.01; 95% CI: 0.86-1.18; P = 0.93) compared with the cobalt chromium-EES (reference). This trend was maintained in patients with non-insulin- and insulin-treated DM.

CONCLUSIONS

In this multicenter clinical-practice PCI registry, no significant between-group differences were found for a 3-year risk of TVF in patients with DM undergoing PCI with various types of contemporary DES. (Evaluation of the First, Second, and New Drug-Eluting Stents in Routine Clinical Practice [IRIS-DES]; NCT01186133).

Cardiovascular Stents: A Review of Past, Current, and Emerging Devices

One of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide is coronary artery disease, a condition characterized by the narrowing of the artery due to plaque deposits. The standard of care for treating this disease is the introduction of a stent at the lesion site. This life-saving tubular device ensures vessel support, keeping the blood-flow path open so that the cardiac muscle receives its vital nutrients and oxygen supply. Several generations of stents have been iteratively developed towards improving patient outcomes and diminishing adverse side effects following the implanting procedure. Moving from bare-metal stents to drug-eluting stents, and recently reaching bioresorbable stents, this research field is under continuous development. To keep up with how stent technology has advanced in the past few decades, this paper reviews the evolution of these devices, focusing on how they can be further optimized towards creating an ideal vascular scaffold.

Impact of stent designs of second-generation drug-eluting stents on long-term outcomes in coronary bifurcation lesions

OBJECTIVES

We compared the long-term clinical outcomes of four different types of second-generation drug-eluting stents (DESs) in coronary bifurcation lesions.

BACKGROUND

Clinical outcomes of different designs of second-generation DESs are not well known in bifurcation lesions.

METHODS

Patients who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention with second-generation DESs for coronary bifurcation lesion were enrolled from 21 centers in South Korea. A total of 2,526 patients was evaluated and divided into four treatment groups according to DES type: bioabsorbable polymer biolimus-eluting stent (BP-BES group, n = 514), platinum chromium everolimus-eluting stent (PtCr-EES group, n = 473), cobalt nickel zotarolimus-eluting stent (CoNi-ZES group, n = 736), or cobalt chromium everolimus-eluting stent (CoCr-EES group, n = 803). Primary outcome was target lesion failure (TLF, defined as a composite of cardiac death, target vessel myocardial infarction, or target lesion revascularization). Inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) was performed to reduce selection bias and potential confounding factors.

RESULTS

For 5 years of follow-up, the rates of TLF among the four DES groups were not significantly different (6.2% for BP-BES group, 8.2% for PtCr-EES group, 6.5% for CoNi-ZES group, and 8.6% for CoCr-EES group, p = .434). The results were consistent after IPTW adjustment (6.8, 8.4, 6.0, and 7.5%, respectively, p = .554). In subgroup analysis, the similarity of long-term outcomes among the four different types of second-generation DES was consistent across subgroups regardless of side branch treatment (p for interaction = .691).

CONCLUSION

There seems to be no significant difference in long-term clinical outcomes among patients who received different types of second-generation DES for coronary bifurcation lesion.

Cost-effectiveness of Drug-Eluting Stents in Percutaneous Coronary Intervention in Brazil's Unified Public Health System (SUS)

Background The use of drug-eluting stents (DESs), compared with bare-metal stents (BMSs), in percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has reduced the rate of restenosis, without an impact on mortality but with an increase in costs. Medical literature lacks randomized studies that economically compare these 2 stent types within the reality of the Brazilian Unified Public Health System (SUS). Objective To estimate the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) between DES and BMS in SUS patients with single-vessel coronary artery disease. Methods Over a 3-year period, patients with symptomatic single-vessel coronary artery disease were randomized in a 1:2 ratio to receive a DES or BMS during PCI, with a 1-year clinical follow-up. The evaluation included in-stent restenosis (ISR), target lesion revascularization (TLR), major adverse events, and cost-effectiveness for each group. P-values <0.05 were considered significant. Results In the DES group, of 74 patients (96.1%) who completed the follow-up, 1 developed ISR (1.4%), 1 had TLR (1.4%), and 1 died (1.4%), with no cases of thrombosis. In the BMS group, of 141 patients (91.5%), ISR occurred in 14 (10.1%), TLR in 10 (7.3%), death in 3 (2.1%), and thrombosis in 1 (0.74%). In the economic analysis, the cost of the procedure was R$ 5,722.21 in the DES group and R$ 4,085.21 in the BMS group. The effectiveness by ISR and TLR was 8.7% for DES and 5.9% for BMS, with an ICER of R$ 18,816.09 and R$ 27,745.76, respectively. Conclusions In the SUS, DESs were cost-effective in accordance with the cost-effectiveness threshold recommended by the World Health Organization (Arq Bras Cardiol. 2020; 115(1):80-89).