SORT OUT V: A new episode in the des wars

摘要

More than 10 years after publication of the first randomised trial to assess drug-eluting stents (DES) in patients with coronary artery disease, many studies have helped to clarify the advantages and limitations of first-generation DES. Despite having high antirestenotic efficacy in the first year after implantation, first-generation DES are associated with a delayed healing effect, leading to increased risk of late stent thrombosis and a decrease in antirestenotic efficacy overtime, which has affected acceptance and stimulated the search for better successors. Polymers have become the main focus of the drawbacks associated with first-generation DES. For this reason, research efforts have been directed at improvement in biocompatibility of permanent polymers, the use of biodegradable polymer coatings that disappear over time, and the development of DES completely bereft of polymer.