One-Year clinical outcomes of drug-eluting stents versus bare-metal stents in large coronary arteries

Abstract

Background: Drug-eluting stents (DESs) have been shown to reduce the risk of restenosis and other adverse cardiac events after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) as compared with bare-metal stents (BMSs). However, the superiority of DES over BMS has been questioned in large vessels. We evaluated the risks and benefits of the use of DES versus BMS in patients who undergo stenting of large coronary arteries (≥3.5 mm) up to 1-year follow-up. Materials and Methods: This was a prospective study carried out in all-comer patients enrolled between January 2015 and December 2015. The patients with the variable indication for PCI, multivessel involvement, prior revascularization, and adjuvant drugs such as GP IIb–IIIa inhibitors were included in the study. However, patients who did not provide written informed consent and received both DES and BMS were excluded from the study. The clinical outcomes were evaluated at 1 year. Results: A total of 266 lesions (240 patients) in the large coronary arteries were stented, of which 130 lesions were treated with BMS and 136 lesions were treated with DES. At 1-year follow-up, target lesion revascularization/target vessel revascularization (P = 0.6492) and all-cause death (P = 0.7098) did not differ significantly between the two groups. In addition, no significant difference was found in patients requiring medical management (P = 0.3937) as well as number of asymptomatic patients (P = 0.2027). Conclusions: At 1-year follow-up, BMSs and DESs showed similar clinical outcomes in large coronary arteries. Hence, the use of BMS in large coronary arteries (≥3.5 mm) should not be discouraged unless clinically indicated.