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Under the direction of several BWH cardiologists, including Director of BWH's Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory Campbell Rogers, MD, Richard Kuntz, MD, Jeffrey Popma, MD and Donald Baim, MD, extensive research involving drug-coated stents helped pave the way for their recent Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval. The FDA has given the green light for widespread use of this innovative stent, which benefits a full range of patients, but most importantly those at highest risk for restenosis.
Restenosis--a condition in which arteries do not heal well around the stent and eventually narrow and close-off again--occurs in at least 20 percent of patients following a coronary artery angioplasty. According to Rogers, restenosis was prevented in 95 percent of all patients receiving the drug-coated version for treatment. “These results were compelling, especially when compared in effectiveness to the conventional uncoated stent,” he said. Many other patients who are at risk for or have heart disease will also be positively impacted with the use of the newly approved stent.
Rogers looks forward to this technology's overall impact on the future of cardiovascular care. “As soon as they become widely available, the stents will dramatically improve the overall quality of care by reducing the likelihood that a patient will have to undergo repeated invasive procedures for their treatment of heart disease,” he said.
BWH was one of only three clinical trial sites in New England and worked cooperatively with MGH and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. A total of 50 medical facilities participated across the country.
“As one of the leading centers for cardiovascular care in the country, BWH is proud to have taken part in this collaborative effort,” said Rogers. “This new technology will enhance the quality of care in all types of cardiac patients.”