Clinical and angiographic outcomes after overdilatation of undersized sirolimus‐eluting stents with largely oversized balloons: An observational study

The purpose of this study was to assess the safety and effectiveness of sirolimus‐eluting stent (SES) postdilatation with largely oversized balloons. We evaluated the clinical outcome of 68 consecutive patients enrolled in the Rapamycin‐Eluting Stent Evaluated at Rotterdam Cardiology Hospital (RESEARCH) registry who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention with SES implantation and further postdilatation with balloons > 1 mm larger than the stent nominal size. Angiographic follow‐up was either scheduled for selected subgroups or clinically driven. Overall, 75 lesions were treated. The procedure was successful in 98.5% of the cases. One patient (1.5%) underwent emergency coronary bypass surgery for acute vessel occlusion. During 10.1 ± 1.7 months of follow‐up, three patients (4.5%) died, one (1.5%) had acute myocardial infarction, and four (6%) had target vessel revascularization. At angiographic follow‐up, loss index was 0.13 ± 0.34 and restenosis rate was 7.7%. Although not routinely recommended in every patient, SES postdilatation with largely oversized balloons appears a safe and effective strategy for selected patients. Catheter Cardiovasc Interv 2004;61:455–460. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.