Long-term outcomes of new-generation coronary stents in China

Abstract

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is one of the major global health care and economic burdens. Since percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) began with balloon angioplasty in 1977, it has more recently been considered that PCI with drug-eluting stents (DES) implantation is the most commonly employed treatment option for patients with CAD. ¹ As time has progressed, there have been exciting technological advancements in the field, including several new-generation DES with thinner stent struts, new anti-proliferative agents, biodegradable polymer (BP) coating, and even bioabsorbable stents for better clinical outcomes. ^{2, 3} However, complications, such as in-stent restenosis, late thrombosis, local chronic inflammation, and re-occlusion, are still problems of DES implantations, meaning that deep analysis of their...