A Polymer-Free Drug-Eluting Stent: In Vitro and In Vivo Analysis

Drug-eluting stents (DES) have significantly improved restenosis rates as compared to bare metal stents (BMS), however, an increased risk in late stent thrombosis (LST) has been observed due to delayed healing and incomplete endothelialization. These adverse events have been associated to the high level of anti-proliferative drugs eluted from 1^st generation DES, as well as non-erodible polymers that remain intact. The purpose of this study was to fist determine optimal surface modification in vitro and to then assess trends in endothelial coverage and recovery of the modified non-polymeric DES in a rabbit iliac stent model.