Drug-Eluting Stents in the Elderly

The introduction of drug-eluting stents (DES) in 2003 has had a great impact on the management of coronary artery disease in the United States. The application of DES to older adults, the population with the highest prevalence of and worst prognosis for coronary artery disease, remains relatively more controversial. Dual-antiplatelet therapy, which is recommended for at least 12 months after DES placement, is particularly problematic for older patients because of greater age-related bleeding risks. Unfortunately, few current data are available to gauge the balance of risk and benefit in elderly community-dwelling DES patients. Although trial data show a benefit for DES among elderly patients, many older adults typically are excluded from randomized trials because of comorbidities, making generalizability of DES safety based on trial data less certain. New, more potent thienopyridines may place the elderly at a particularly elevated bleeding risk. There is a fine balance between efficacy and safety for older DES patients that still needs to be clarified. As the population ages, these issues become more pervasive and of widespread concern. This review summarizes the current literature on DES therapy in the elderly, with a focus on effectiveness and safety profiles of DES versus bare metal stents.