Drug-Coating Safety Risk Acknowledged At Cardiology Gathering, But Cause Remains Elusive

06 Mar 2019

Physicians and researchers in an all-day session at the Cardiovascular Research Technologies conference in Washington, DC, on March 5 largely backed the recent finding that paclitaxel-coated balloons and stents may be tied to a higher patient mortality rate. But the specific mechanism underlying the deaths remains unknown.

Cardiologists and researchers attending a conference in Washington, DC, on March 5 largely backed recent research showing that devices coated with a specific drug may lead to increased mortality in peripheral artery disease (PAD) patients. But there was little agreement as to what causes might lie behind the apparent risk.

An all-day town hall on the safety of drug-coated balloons (DCBs) and drug-eluting stents (DESs) was held at the Cardiovascular...