J&J's Palmaz-Schatz stent
This article was originally published in The Gray Sheet
Executive Summary
Six-month follow-up of a randomized trial comparing the Johnson & Johnson Heparin coated stent with balloon angioplasty in patients with acute myocardial infarction shows a 12.4% risk of death, repeat MI, disabling cerebrovascular accident and ischemia-driven target vessel revascularization in the stent arm compared to 20.1% in the angioplasty arm (p<0.01), the study's primary endpoint. Results from the 62-center, 900 patient trial were presented at an AHA press conference Nov. 9 by Cindy Grines, MD, William Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, Michigan. The results also show reduced restenosis in the stent arm (20.3% vs. 32.5%; p<0.001) and reduced angina (11.1% vs. 16.9%; p<0.02). Six-month reocclusion rates were also favorable compared to PTCA (10-13%) and thromobolytic therapy (30%), Grines noted. "In the era of stenting it looks like we've reduced that down to 4%, that's a major improvement and could potentially reduce rates of reinfarction" and improve LV function, Grines said