Sealing of Coronary Perforations With a Second-Generation Covered Stent Graft - Results From the PAST-PERF Registry

New-generation single-layer PTFE-covered coronary stent for endovascular repair of iatrogenic arterial side-branch injury in non-coronary lesions for the RECOVER (REsults after percutaneous interventions with COVERed stents) Investigators

BACKGROUND

The incidence of iatrogenic injuries in peripheral arteries is increasing due to the expanding opportunities of managing various cardiovascular diseases by means of percutaneous intervention. Thus, endovascular repair with implantation of covered stent (CS) after vascular injury is gaining importance as an alternative to open surgery. In cases of smaller side-branch injuries, stenting of the main vessel with subsequent exclusion and sealing of the side-branch is associated with unfavourable revascularization rates and unpredictable ischemic complications in the corresponding supply area.

OBJECTIVE

This study reports the procedural and clinical outcomes of patients with iatrogenic vascular side-branch injuries treated with coronary-CS directly at the site of injury.

METHODS

This is a retrospective, multicentre registry study, including 40 patients with acute iatrogenic injuries of arterial side-branches undergoing implantation of single-layer polytetrafluorethylene (PTFE)-CS at 3 different centres in Europe between June 2014 and June 2023. Endpoints were procedural success, death, target vessel reintervention (TVR), bleeding and the need for surgical conversion.

RESULTS

A total of 40 patients underwent implantation of single-layer PTFE-CS in the lower (97.5 %) and the upper limbs (2.5 %). The most common mechanisms were injuries after punctures, caused by needle and/or sheath (80 %), balloon-dilations (7.5 %) and during/after non-cardiac surgery (7.5 %). Procedural success was achieved in all cases (100 %). The rate of in-hospital mortality was 7.5 %. The median duration of hospitalization after the CS procedure was 4 days [2; 5.3]. At a median follow-up of 202.5 days [97.3-711.8], 36 patients (90 %) were alive and main vessel patency was 100 %. There were no cases of TVRs, bleedings or surgical conversions. Access-site related complications occurred in 5 % of all cases.

CONCLUSIONS

In this study, the use of new-generation single-layer PTFE-covered coronary stents in non-coronary side-branch lesions after iatrogenic arterial injury shows a high technical success rate and favourable clinical efficacy and safety.

Meta-long Papyrus: Meta-analysis of mid to long-term outcomes of PK Papyrus covered stent

BACKGROUND

Although covered stents (CS) represent a potentially life-saving intervention for coronary perforation (CAP), their application has expanded to other contexts, including coronary aneurysms (CAA). However, data regarding mid- and long-term outcomes of CS in these settings scenarios remains limited.

AIMS

This meta-analysis aims to evaluate major adverse cardiac events (MACE) from discharge through long-term follow-up in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention with the new generation polyurethane-covered cobalt-chromium PK Papyrus CS.

METHODS

We conducted a meta-analysis of data from three observational trials that included long-term follow-up of patients who underwent PK Papyrus CS implantation: Papyrus-Spain, SOS PK Papyrus, and PAST-PERF registry.

RESULTS

332 patients underwent PK Papyrus CS implantation, 236 (71.1%) for CAP, 70 (21.1%) for CAA and 26 (7.8%) for other indications. After a mean follow-up of 16.2 months, the MACE was 14.3%, with Target Lesion Revascularization (TLR) being the most frequent (8.5%), followed by stent thrombosis (ST), 3.3% and cardiac death (CD), 2.6%. Comparing CAP and CAA subgroups, the MACE rate in CAA was significantly higher than CAP (21.4% vs 9.7%, p < 0.01), primary driven by ST (CAA: 8.6% vs CAP: 1.3%; p = 0.0015).

CONCLUSIONS

The clinical outcomes following PK Papyrus CS implantation are deemed acceptable, considering the challenging scenarios and the existing alternative treatments. However, MACE rates in patients with CAA who received Papyrus PK CS were significantly higher than in those with CAP, underscoring the importance of meticulous patient selection and optimization of CS in these complex patients and coronary anatomies.

Clinical Safety and Efficacy of New-Generation Single-Layer Polytetrafluorethylene Covered Coronary Stents

BACKGROUND

Early-generation "sandwich-design" polytetrafluorethylene (PTFE) covered coronary stents (CS) are associated with a high frequency of adverse events. New-generation single layer PTFE-CS offers the potential to enhanced procedural efficacy and improves clinical safety. Data from a dedicated study, concerning outcomes after treatment with single-layer PTFE-CS in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention are scant.

METHODS

This is a retrospective multicenter registry including 30 patients undergoing implantation of 39 single-layer PTFE-CS (BeGraft-coronary Stent Graft System, Bentley InnoMed GmbH, Hechingen, Germany) in native coronary arteries or saphenous bypass grafts, in 3 centers in Europe, between May 2013 and May 2019. Endpoints of interest were procedural success (placement of covered stent), binary-angiographic restenosis (BAR), percent diameter stenosis (% DS) and late-lumen loss at 6-8 months follow-up angiography, rates of target lesion revascularization (TLR), myocardial infarction (MI), stent thrombosis (ST) and mortality at 12 months.

RESULTS

28 patients underwent implantation of 37 CS due to coronary artery perforation 2 patients due to coronary artery aneurysm. Technical success was achieved in all patients (100 %). More than one stent was implanted in 7 patients (25 %) all in the perforation group. Follow-up angiography was available in 23 patients (77 %) showing favorable results: BAR = 21.8 %, %DS = 30.3 ± 27.5; LLL = 0.16 ± 0.81 mm. At 12 months all patients were alive, rates of TLR were low (3 patients, 10.0 %), there was one case of late stent thrombosis (3.3 %) and one MI (3.3 %).

CONCLUSIONS

In this dedicated study, implantation of a new single layer PTFE-CS for the treatment of native coronary arteries or saphenous vein grafts after perforation or due to aneurysm showed high technical success rates and favorable angiographic and clinical efficacy. Clinical safety outcomes are encouraging, but larger prospective studies are needed to determine long-term safety of this device.

Applying Principles of Regenerative Medicine to Vascular Stent Development

Stents are a widely-used device to treat a variety of cardiovascular diseases. The purpose of this review is to explore the application of regenerative medicine principles into current and future stent designs. This review will cover regeneration-relevant approaches emerging in the current research landscape of stent technology. Regenerative stent technologies include surface engineering of stents with cell secretomes, cell-capture coatings, mimics of endothelial products, surface topography, endothelial growth factors or cell-adhesive peptides, as well as design of bioresorable materials for temporary stent support. These technologies are comparatively analyzed in terms of their regenerative effects, therapeutic effects and challenges faced; their benefits and risks are weighed up for suggestions about future stent developments. This review highlights two unique regenerative features of stent technologies: selective regeneration, which is to selectively grow endothelial cells on a stent but inhibit the proliferation and migration of smooth muscle cells, and stent-assisted regeneration of ischemic tissue injury.

Drug-eluting stents for the treatment of coronary artery disease: A review of recent advances

INTRODUCTION

Percutaneous coronary intervention is a widely used procedure for the treatment of coronary artery disease to relieve narrowing or occlusion and improve blood supply. Although only balloon angioplasty was performed in the early period, coronary stents were developed later and coronary drug-eluting stents were introduced to decrease in-stent restenosis, which is related to the proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells.

AREAS COVERED

The drug-eluting stents are composed of a metallic or polymeric platform, specific drug, and polymers or coating for drug release. In this article, the recent advances in drug-eluting stent technologies for the treatment of coronary artery disease and adjunctive antiplatelet therapy after drug-eluting stent implantation will be reviewed.

EXPERT OPINION

The need for further advances in drug-eluting stents or fully bioresorbable coronary scaffolds still exists to improve patient survival or clinical outcomes. The use for different actions or of combinations of drugs with several actions can be potential. Technological refinement and progress in manufacturing to improve mechanical integrity are needed, particularly for fully bioresorbable scaffolds. For antiplatelet therapy after stenting, clinical bleeding reduction strategies, such as a shortened duration of dual-antiplatelet therapy, are in progress.