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Review: The safety of drug-eluting stents

Institute of Cardiology — University of Bologna, Policlinico S.Orsola-Malpighi (Pad 21), Via Massarenti, 9, 40138 Bologna Italy, francescosaia{at}hotmail.com

Antonio Marzocchi

Catheterization Laboratory, Institute of Cardiology — University of Bologna, Policlinico S. Orsola — Malpighi (Pad. 21), Via Massarenti, 9, 40138 Bologna, Italy, antonio.marzocchi{at}tin.it

Angelo Branzi

Institute of Cardiology — University of Bologna, Policlinico S. Orsola — Malpighi (Pad. 21), Via Massarenti, 9, 40138 Bologna, Italy, dircard{at}med.unibo.it

Drug-eluting stents (DES) in percutaneous coronary interventions significantly reduce rates of restenosis and the need for new revascularizations compared with bare metal stents. However, as the use of DES has increased dramatically, questions have been raised about their long-term safety. Concerns about an increased risk of late stent thrombosis, particularly beyond the first year of treatment, have arisen and have been exacerbated by sparse and conflicting information, and boosted an intense debate between cardiologists. In this article, we reviewed the most recent information to clarify the conundrum of late stent thrombosis and the long-term safety of DES.

Key Words: Drug-eluting stent • thrombosis • mortality • myocardial infarction • review

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