Safety and efficacy of biodegradable polymer-coated sirolimus-eluting stents in "real-world" practice: 18-month clinical and 9-month angiographic outcomes.

OBJECTIVES This study sought to evaluate the safety and efficacy of a biodegradable polymer-coated sirolimus-eluting stent (Excel, JW Medical System, Weihai, China) with 6-month dual antiplatelet therapy in daily practice. BACKGROUND It has been hypothesized that persistent presence of polymer may compromise the safety of drug-eluting stents, and that therefore biodegradable polymer coatings might reduce late adverse events. METHODS Between June and November 2006, 2,077 patients, exclusively treated with Excel stents at 59 centers from 4 countries, were enrolled in this prospective, multicenter registry. Recommended antiplatelet regimen included clopidogrel and aspirin for 6 months followed by chronic aspirin therapy. RESULTS The average duration of clopidogrel treatment was 199.8 +/- 52.7 days and 80.5% of discharged patients discontinued clopidogrel at 6 months. The cumulative rates of major adverse cardiac events were 0.9% at 30 days, 2.7% at 1 year, and 3.1% at 18 months. Overall rate of stent thrombosis was 0.87% at 18 months. The rates of acute, subacute, late, and very late stent thrombosis were 0.1%, 0.38%, 0.34%, and 0.05%, respectively. Angiographic follow-up, performed in 974 (31.6%) lesions from 653 patients (31.7%), revealed a mean in-stent late lumen loss of 0.21 +/- 0.39 mm. Binary restenosis rates were 3.8% in-stent and 6.7% in-segment. CONCLUSIONS This multicenter registry documents satisfactory safety and efficacy profiles, as evidenced by low rates of major adverse cardiac events and stent thrombosis up to 18 months, for the Excel biodegradable polymer-based sirolimus-eluting stent when used with 6 months of dual antiplatelet therapy in a "real-world" setting. (Multi-Center Registry Trial of EXCEL Biodegradable Polymer Drug-Eluting Stent [CREATE]; NCT00331578).