November 4, 2007 – Drug-eluting stents to open blocked coronary arteries caused no more risks for death or heart attack than bare metal stents, according to a late-breaking outcomes trial presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2007.
The Massachusetts stent (MASS Stent) trial compared death rates between patients who received drug-eluting stents and those who received bare metal stents. They reviewed records of all adults undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with stenting between April 1, 2003 and December 31, 2004 at all acute care non-U.S. governmental hospitals in Massachusetts. Using this criterion, they identified 20,654 patients from a state database with mandatory follow-up after PCI.
“This is the largest study of patients comparing drug-eluting stents and bare metal stents for long-term outcomes in the U.S.,” said Laura Mauri, M.D., principal investigator of the trial and assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, MA.
“It was previously established that drug-eluting stents make it less likely that patients will need repeat procedures within the first year after a stent procedure,” Mauri said. “What we were less certain about before this study was the long-term safety of drug-eluting stents compared to bare metal.”
Mauri adds that this trial has several benefits for addressing this issue. “It is a very large study with long-term follow up, it reflects contemporary U.S. practice – where most patients receive drug-eluting stents – and it includes all patients who were undergoing PCI – not just those who would have qualified for a randomized trial.”
Patients were followed up for at least two years after receiving a stent. Researchers compared the number of deaths, heart attacks, and revascularization procedures (either bypass surgery or another PCI) between the two groups. The adjusted incidence of mortality at two years was 9.4 percent for those with drug-eluting stents and 11.9 percent for those with bare metal stents.
Statements and conclusions of study authors that are presented at American Heart Association scientific meetings are solely those of the study authors and do not necessarily reflect association policy or position. The American Heart Association makes no representation or warranty as to their accuracy or reliability.
For more information: www.americanheart.org
May 15, 2024 
