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World Congress of Cardiology: DES Safety Dominates Discussions

While the greater efficacy of drug-eluting stents (DES) compared to bare-metal stents is widely accepted, over the past year, data has continued to build showing that first-generation DES also have a higher late-stage in-stent thrombosis risk, a complication that can cause death 30% of the time, according to some estimates. The findings of these studies had some physicians at this year's World Congress of Cardiology calling for "an immediate halt to DES overuse." However, most conceded that additional randomized trials will be needed to fully understand the potential risks associated with these devices.

Some surprising drug-eluting stent (DES) data dominated delegate discussions at the 2006 World Congress of Cardiology (WCC), a joint meeting of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) and the World Heart Federation (WHF), held early in September in Barcelona, Spain. Although long-term in-stent thrombosis safety concerns with DES continue to be the primary safety focus, a controversial meta-analysis also highlighted a potential link between Cordis Corp./ Johnson & Johnson’s (Miami Lakes, FL) Cypher DES and cancer. The findings of these studies had some physicians calling for an immediate halt to DES "overuse," but most conceded that additional randomized trials will be needed to fully understand the potential risks associated with these devices.

While the greater efficacy of DES compared to bare-metal stents (BMS) is widely accepted, over the past year, data has...

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