International Study to Look at Self-Apposing Stent in AMI Patients

December 29, 2010 – An international trial for a self-apposing stent has begun, with 50 of the total 500 patients already enrolled. The APPOSITION III trial will look at the Stentys self-apposing stent in treating acute myocardial infarction (AMI).

The Stentys stent is different from conventional stents in that it is self-apposing. It "fits snugly" into the contour of a blood vessel, and its shape and diameter adapt to the anatomic changes of the coronary arteries during the post-AMI phase. The APPOSITION II randomized trial compared the stent with a conventional stent in patients suffering a heart attack. It showed that, three days after an AMI, 28 percent of patients treated with conventional stents displayed significant malapposition, meaning that the stent was not completely in contact with the artery wall. Malapposition puts AMI patients at significant risk of potential fatal complications such as a blockage of the stent (in-stent thrombosis). In contrast, none of the patients treated with the Stentys stent had stent malapposition.

"The cardiologists in our cath lab are extremely excited to be part of the APPOSITION III study, because it allows us to use the STENTYS self-apposing stent in a real-life setting for the treatment of AMI patients," said study investigator Harald Mudra, M.D., Ph.D., head of the department of cardiology, pulmonology and internal intensive care medicine of the Neuperlach Hospital in Munich, Germany.

For more information: www.stentys.com