Stents are useful bail-out devices in coronary angioplasty. They are also used electively for situations associated with poor angioplasty results (e.g., restenotic lesions, venous grafts) and may reduce restenosis rates. However, the significant incidence of stent thrombosis necessitated aggressive anticoagulation with associated hemorrhagic complications. This remains a major limitation of stenting. We present our experience of stenting with half (disarticulated) Palmaz-Schatz coronary stents in eight consecutive patients, managed with aspirin alone. No patient experienced acute or subacute stent thrombosis.
A total of 110 half (disarticulated) Palmaz-Schatz coronary stents were implanted in 102 patients. Procedural success rate was 98%. Elective stenting was performed in five patients. The others received half stents for bail-out situations, including short dissections, relapsing stenoses, dissections not adequately covered by a full stent, ostial stenoses, and thrombus containing lesions. Seventeen patients received no anticoagulation except aspirin. Complications included one procedural death, three acute occlusions (resulting in one Q and two non-Q wave myocardial infarctions), and one non-Q wave infarction related to side branch closure. Stenting with the half Plamaz-Schatz coronary stent is an effective technique. It allows stenting in situations where a full stent may not be ideally suited. Use of only half a stent reduces thrombogenicity and halves costs.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.