Sep 19 2003
Positive findings from Guidant Corp regarding their everolimus eluting stents with bioabsorbable polymers were reported at the 15th Annual Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics Conference in Washington D.C. In these tests, the drug containing stents were evaluated against metallic control stents.
The tests reported on involve two materials designated Future II and Future I.
Six month follow up tests involving Future II backed up previous findings involving Future I in that they met the primary end point with a 4.8% major adverse cardiac events (MACE) rate in the everolimus eluting stent arm. Furthermore, angiographic endpoint results showed no in-stent restenosis or re-narrowing in the everolimus containing stents compared 19.4% in the control materials.
After 12 months, the results for Future I stents reinforce the 6 month findings regarding safety and efficacy. No new MACE was reported between 6 and 12 months.
Results from both trials indicate that the everolimus eluting bioabsorbable polymer stents are safe and effective at reducing tissue proliferation in the stent after implantation.
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