title: Combining short stent implantation and drug-eluting stenting for routine use yields a low restenosis rate.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Stent length serves as a predictor of restenosis in use of bare metal stents (BMS). This has been demonstrated in a feasibility study that used a single short BMS implant (<9 mm) in a high proportion of lesions; the study observed a low rate of restenosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  We performed a pilot prospective study to investigate in a series of consecutive patients the immediate and long-term effects of implantation of either 1) a single short BMS for all lesions with low probability of restenosis or 2) a drug-eluting stent (DES) for all other lesions.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The 200 patients studied had 236 coronary artery lesions that were treated with short BMS in 168/236 patients (71.2%) and with DES in 68/236 patients (28.8%). Angiographic success was achieved in 230/236 lesions (97.5%) and procedural success in 194/200 patients (97.0%). Restenosis occurred in 15/153 lesions (9.8%) after short BMS, in 3/62 lesions (4.8%) after DES, and in 18/215 of all lesions (8.4%) angiographically controlled after six to eight months. Target vessel revascularization was performed in 16/218 lesion (7.4%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Most of the coronary artery lesions in this small group of consecutive patients were treated sufficiently with a single BMS implant. This differential approach of treating suitable lesions in medium- to large-sized vessels with a single short BMS device and treating all other lesions with a DES implant resulted in a low incidence of restenosis.
authors.affiliation: German Clinic for Diagnostic, Wiesbaden, Germany. dietz.kardio@wiesbaden.de
authors.forename: Ulrich
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Dietz
authors.forename: Cheryl
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Dauer
authors.forename: Heinz
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lambertz