Drug-coated balloons: Technical and clinical progress.

The advancement of drug-coated balloons (DCB) presents an alternative nonstent method in the percutaneous treatment of atherosclerotic lesions. While the current generation of drug-eluting stents (DES) are the device of choice, especially in coronary artery disease (CAD), DCB has potential applications in the treatment of de novo lesions, in-stent restenosis (ISR), bifurcations, and in peripheral artery disease (PAD). In terms of coronary clinical experience, DCB is used most in ISR scenarios and more data are collected to support the use of DCB in de novo lesions compared to best-in-class DES. The use of DCB in bifurcation side branch treatment has demonstrated safety, and with good angiographic and clinical outcomes, but more data from randomized trials will be required to assess its clinical value. For PAD, the clinical outcomes of DCB with and without debulking devices in diseased femoropopliteal arteries and treatment of below-the-knee (BTK) vessels with DCB are discussed. Current data demonstrated conflicting long-term safety outcomes in the use of paclitaxel devices in the femoral and/or popliteal arteries, while the role of DCB in BTK disease remains uncertain due to a lack of randomized controlled trial data. In summary, this review provides an overall view of current DCB technologies and progress, followed by an update on DCB clinical data in the treatment of CAD and PAD.

Role and significance of plasma citrulline in the early phase after small bowel transplantation in pigs.

A reliable serological marker of acute cellular rejection (ACR) after small bowel transplantation (SBTx) is still missing. Plasma citrulline level (PCL) reflects the functional integrity of intestinal mucosa which is partially lost during ACR. The aim of our study was to investigate the role of PCL as marker of ACR after SBTx. Eighteen German landrace pigs were used and divided into three groups. Group 1 (G1), autologous SBTx (n = 4) as control; group 2 (G2), allogeneic SBTx without immunosuppression (IS) (n = 7) and group 3 (G3), allogeneic SBTx with IS (n = 7). IS consisted of tacrolimus and steroids without induction treatment. Observation period was 14 days. Mucosal biopsies were obtained intraoperatively and daily using a Thiry-Vella loop. ACR was differentiated into indeterminate, mild, moderate and severe using a standardized grading schema. PCL was measured daily. An ACR onset occurred generally from postoperative day 4 both in G2 and G3 as mild form and developed differently in the two groups: moderate to severe in G2 and indeterminate to mild in G3. A significant decline of PCL occurred only in cases of moderate and severe ACR, but not in cases of indeterminate and mild ACR. The PCL failed as a marker in the early diagnosis of ACR and became reliable only when advanced mucosal damage was present.