During the late summer and early autumn of 2006, the medical community began to express second thoughts about the safety of drug-coated cardiac stents, which have in recent years been given credit for reducing the frequency of complications arising from the use of a previous generation of stents.
The publicity generated by the news media interested me in my professional role representing health care providers, and for personal reasons as well. In June 1999, I underwent coronary angioplasty and stent placement to address a 95 percent blockage of one coronary artery. I have been closely monitored in semi-annual visits since that time, and I recently discussed with my cardiologist the evolving technology of drug-coated stents. Our discussion led me to research the procedure in general, and the recent evolution of cardiac stents in use within the United States and abroad.
