Drug-eluting stents--which slowly release medication into the artery wall--prevent a build-up of scar tissue inside the stent, a complication known as in-stent restenosis. These devices have only been rigorously tested in patients with stable cardiovascular disease. The Randomized Comparison of Paclitaxel Eluting Stent Versus Conventional Stent in ST-segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction (PASSION) study has taken the next step, focusing on patients with the most serious form of heart attack, ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI).
"We wanted to know whether a paclitaxel-eluting stent could decrease restenosis and limit repeat coronary interventions in patients with acute STEMI," said Mauritis T. Dirksen, M.D., one of the investigators of the PASSION study. Dr. Dirksen and his colleagues from the Amsterdam Department of Interventional Cardiology, OLVG, The Netherlands, randomly assigned 620 patients with acute STEMI to artery-opening treatment with either a conventional bare-metal stent (the BSX Express2 or Liberté) or a paclitaxel-eluting (BSX Taxus) stent. After one year, they compared the combined rates of death, repeat MI, and repeat catheter-based intervention or bypass surgery on the heart-attack-related artery. A preliminary six-month follow-up showed that the paclitaxel-eluting stent reduced the rate of repeat procedures in or near the stent to just 1 percent, as compared to 3.6 percent with the bare-metal stent. The drug-eluting did not improve other clinical outcomes, however.
Dr. Dirksen will present one-year follow-up results at a Late Breaking Clinical Trials session on Sunday, March 12, at 9:20 a.m. ET and at a press conference on Monday, March 12, at 8 a.m. ET.
The American College of Cardiology (www.acc.org) represents the majority of board certified cardiovascular physicians in the United States. Its mission is to advocate for quality cardiovascular care through education, research, promotion, development and application of standards and guidelines- and to influence health care policy. ACC.06 and the ACC inaugural i2 Summit, the first-ever meeting for interventional cardiologists, will bring together more than 30,000 cardiologists and cardiovascular specialists to share the newest discoveries in treatment and prevention, while helping the ACC achieve its mission to address and improve issues in cardiovascular medicine.
Innovation in Intervention: i2 Summit is an annual meeting for those practicing coronary and non-coronary interventions. Sponsored by the American College of Cardiology, in partnership with the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions and other professional associations, i2 Summit 2006 offers late-breaking interventional clinical trials, peripheral, vascular, coronary and valvular education, live cases from Europe, Asia and the United States, emerging technology / state-of-the-art lectures, expert simulation demonstrations, interactive Laptop Learning and general cardiovascular education at ACC.06, held concurrently with i2 Summit, for a dynamic, complete cardiovascular educational experience. i2 Summit consolidates all clinical, educational, practical and community needs into one event and delivers unsurpassed needs-based learning with true objectivity.