Bioresorbable Vascular Scaffolds ― Are We Facing a Time of Crisis or One of Breakthrough? ―

Bioresorbable polymeric vascular scaffolds: a cautionary tale.

The everolimus-eluting bioresorbable vascular scaffold (BVS, Abbott Vascular, Santa Clara, CA) is an exciting advance in percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), providing a temporary coronary scaffold for at least 3 months and being resorbed by about 2 years.1–3 Along with patient preference, potential advantages over metallic stents include restored vasomotion, reduced late thrombosis, and u...

Bioresorbable Vascular Scaffolds for Coronary Revascularization.

Contemporary metallic drug-eluting stents are associated with very good 1-year outcomes but an ongoing risk of stent-related adverse events (thrombosis, myocardial infarction, restenosis) after 1 year. The pathogenesis of these very late events is likely related to the permanent presence of the metal stent frame or polymer. Bioresorbable scaffolds have been developed to provide drug delivery an...

Bioresorbable vascular scaffolds: between promises and reality

Multiplicity of morphologies in poly (l-lactide) bioresorbable vascular scaffolds.

Poly(l-lactide) (PLLA) is the structural material of the first clinically approved bioresorbable vascular scaffold (BVS), a promising alternative to permanent metal stents for treatment of coronary heart disease. BVSs are transient implants that support the occluded artery for 6 mo and are completely resorbed in 2 y. Clinical trials of BVSs report restoration of arterial vasomotion and eliminat...

Bioresorbable Vascular Scaffolds for the Treatment of Chronic Total Occlusions

Chronic total occlusions (CTO) are challenging lesions for percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI); however, innovations in PCI techniques and devices have contributed to increased procedural successes. Although favorable 3-year outcome data have been reported after the implantation of newer generation drug-eluting stents (DES), CTO PCI generally requires long segment of stenting for diffusely...