Paclitaxel Drug-Coated Balloon After Bare-Metal Stent Implantation, an Alternative Treatment to Drug-Eluting Stent in High Bleeding Risk Patients (The Panelux Trial).

BACKGROUND: Prolonged dual-antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) in high bleeding risk (HBR) patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention can be challenging. We assessed the clinical safety of bare-metal stent (BMS) implantation followed by drug-coated balloon (DCB) treatment in HBR patients for whom drug-eluting stent implantation could be problematic in maintaining low ischemic event rate without increasing hemorrhagic events. METHODS: The study included patients with at least 1 de novo lesion who were either under long-term anticoagulant treatment or required semi-urgent non-coronary intervention. The strategy consisted of PRO-Kinetic Energy BMS stent (Biotronik AG) implantation followed by Pantera Lux DCB (Biotronik AG) and patients were followed for up to 12 months in 37 French centers. RESULTS: Between October 2013 and April 2015, a total of 432 patients with 623 de novo lesions who were either under long-term anticoagulant treatment (n = 300) or required semi-urgent non-cardiac surgery (n = 132) were treated by BMS plus DCB. Mean patient age was 74.1 ± 9.1 years, 76.4% were men, and 38% were diabetic. The composite primary endpoint rate (defined as target-lesion failure at 12 months) was 5.6% (95% confidence interval, 3.3-7.9). Median duration for DAPT treatment was 33 days. Hemorrhagic events, as defined by the Bleeding Academic Research Consortium, occurred in 31 patients (7.2%) and definite stent thrombosis occurred in 5 patients (1.3%). CONCLUSIONS: The combination of BMS plus DCB intervention is safe even with a short duration of DAPT. This strategy might be an alternative to DES implantation in HBR patients if future randomized trials support this approach.

Effect of a closure device on complication rates in high-local-risk patients: results of a randomized multicenter trial.

Clinical trials have shown that coronary stenting is associated with a high level of complications at the access site. Arterial sealing devices have proven their efficacy in obtaining immediate hemostasis after sheath removal, in allowing early ambulation, and in improving patient comfort. However, there is no report showing a reduction of local complications related to their use. The purpose of this multicenter study was to compare randomly the efficacy of Angio-Seal versus compression methods of hemostasis in reducing the rate of access site complications after coronary angioplasty in 612 selected patients with higher risk of local events satisfying at least one of the following high-risk criteria: age > 70, previous puncture at the same site, history of hypertension, treatment with ticlopidine at least 2 days before the procedure, use of abciximab, 8 Fr access, prolonged heparin treatment after the angioplasty, and use of lytics if fibrinogen > 1 g/l. Group A (n = 306) had immediate sheath removal, Angio-Seal implantation, and cessation of bed rest 4 hr after the intervention. Group B (n = 306) had sheath removal according to local practice and cessation of bed rest 6-18 hr after the hemostasis procedure, also according to local practice. Clinical follow-up was done at 1 hr, 4 hr, 24 hr, discharge, and 7 days and a systematic color flow duplex sonography was performed to confirm diagnosis of access site complication. In group A, device deployment and immediate hemostasis were obtained in, respectively, 96.8% and 87% of patients. Time to hemostasis was shorter in group A: 5 vs. 52 min (P < 0.001). Cessation of bed rest was dramatically reduced in group A (438 +/- 450 min) vs. group B (952 +/- 308 min; P < 0.001). The cumulative rate of complications, using a composite primary endpoint, at 7 days was significantly different between the two groups: 5.9% of group A patients and 18% of group B patients (P < 0.001). This difference was mainly due to the dramatic reduction of prolonged bleeding in group A patients. Angio-Seal device use in high-local-risk patients allows immediate sheath removal and hemostasis with a reduction of local event rate despite a higher level of anticoagulation, compared to regular compression techniques, directly related to a dramatic decrease of prolonged bleeding.