Objective: To evaluate whether an everolimus-eluting stent (EES) with thinner stent struts and polymer results in less periprocedural myonecrosis and adverse outcomes.
Background: Higher periprocedural myocardial infarction (MI) rates have been reported with the TAXUS® EXPRESS(2) paclitaxel-eluting stent (PES) compared to the bare metal EXPRESS(2)® stent due to more frequent side branch compromise, presumably attributable to the thickness of the stent/polymer on the PES.
Methods: In the SPIRIT III trial, we identified 113 patients in the XIENCE V® EES group and 63 patients in the TAXUS EXPRESS(2) PES group who met the criteria of having a lesion with a jailed side branch (<2 mm diameter, and <50% stenosis). Two-year clinical outcomes were evaluated.
Results: A periprocedural increase in Creatine Kinase-MB >1× upper normal level occurred in 9.0% of EES compared to 29.7% of PES patients with jailed side branches, P = 0.01. Through 2 years, major adverse cardiac events (MACE; cardiac death, MI, or target lesion revascularization [TLR]) occurred in 6.8% of EES and 19.0% of PES jailed side branch patients (P = 0.03), with numerically lower rates of MI (2.9% vs. 10.3%, P = 0.07) and TLR (3.9% vs. 10.3%, P = 0.17) in the EES group, with comparable rates of cardiac death (1.9% vs. 1.7%, P = 1.00).
Conclusions: In this post-hoc analysis of the SPIRIT III RCT, patients undergoing stenting of target lesions with jailed side branches with the thin strut and polymer XIENCE V EES compared to the thicker strut TAXUS PES had lower rates of MACE through 2 years due to fewer MIs and TLRs. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc.