Article: Drug-coated cardiac stents better: study

Report from Indo-Asian News Service brought to you by HT Syndication.

New York, May 25 -- Heart patients who have received drug-coated stents to open their blocked coronary arteries have a healthier future, according to new research.

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania found that patients with drug-coated stents were less apt to die, have another heart attack or require extra stents or bypass surgery in the two years following the first placement, compared to those who receive bare metal stents.

The study, the first large follow-up effort, shows a clear, lifesaving benefit of what are known as "drug-eluting" stents.

The findings are being published in the forthcoming issue of the ...