Clinical Experience with Wiktor Stent Implantation: A Report from the French Multicentric Registry

Our objective was to evaluate, in a French multicenter study, the results of implantation of Wiktor tantalum wire coronary stents in stenosed or occluded coronary vessels or in saphenous vein bypass grafts. The study was a retrospective analysis of clinical and angiographic data from patients treated with tantalum wire stent implanted at five centers. Stenting of native coronary arteries or saphenous vein bypass grafts was attempted in 272 patients after acute or threatened closure of the target vessel, or because the lesions concerned were considered to be at particularly high risk of becoming restenosed, or because the result of primary angioplasty was inadequate. Successful stent deployment was achieved in 261 95.9%) of 272 patients. The incidence of major complications such as death, myocardial infarction (MI), or a condition requiring urgent bypass surgery was 8.1%. Major vascular complications occurred in 2.6% and actually decreased with a new anticoagulant regimen. Angiographic follow-up at a mean of 6 months after stenting showed restenosis in 23.6% with a more frequent restenosis in the group with stent size equal to 3 mm than in the group with stent size superior to 3 mm (46.1% vs 13.7%, P < 0.01). Stenting with the Wiktor tantalum wire stent is an effective means of treating acute complications and suboptimal results after angioplasty. This stent seems to offer hope of a significant reduction in the rate of late restenosis in native coronary vessels, but a prospective comparison of balloon angioplasty and stenting is needed .