The first drug–eluting stent (DES) dedicated for the treatment of coronary lesions with very small reference vessel diameter may be associated with a low rate of target lesion failure and late lumen loss without a signal for stent thrombosis, according to research published May 18 in the journal JACC: Cardiovascular Interventions and presented at EuroPCR conference in Paris.

Matthew J. Price, MD, FACC, et al., enrolled a total of 101 subjects with 104 lesions. Patients had a mean lesion length of 12.6±6.3mm and a mean reference vessel diameter of 1.91±0.26mm and the majority of lesions were anatomically complex.

At discharge, the rate of target lesion failure was 2.0 percent, driven by target vessel myocardial infarction. The rate of 12–month target lesion failure was 5.0 percent, fulfilling the pre–specified performance goal. Target lesion revascularization occurred in 2.0 percent, target vessel myocardial infarction in 3.0 percent, target vessel failure of 5.0 percent and major adverse cardiac events in 5.0 percent of subjects. There were no deaths or episodes of stent thrombosis.

In an angiographic sub–study of 26 subjects with 27 lesions, in–stent late lumen loss was 0.26±0.48mm, in–stent percent diameter stenosis was 22.5±26.9 percent, and in–stent binary restenosis occurred in 12.0 percent of subjects.

"The use of this novel–sized DES appears to be a feasible approach for the treatment of coronary lesions in extremely small vessels," the authors conclude.