92 www.journals.viamedica.pl/medical_research_journal ORIGINAL ARTICLE Justas Keršulis, Robertas Pranevičius, Kasparas Briedis, Ramūnas Unikas, Ąžuolas Sirtautas, Norvydas Zapustas Lithuanian University of Health and Sciences Evaluation of two years’ treatment results after implantation of Biolimus A9 stents in coronary arteries ABSTRACT Introduction. Stenting is a widespread procedure for patients suffering from coronary artery disease. The use of drug-covered stents has improved stenting safety and treatment effciency. Using second-genera- tion Biolimus drug-covered A9 stents is associated with reduced risk of stent thrombosis compared with frst-generation ones. The aim of the study was to evaluate two years’ treatment results after implantation of Biolimus A9 stents in coronary arteries in patients who suffer from coronary artery disease. Methods. The study included 216 patients who suffered from coronary artery disease and were treated using Biolimus A9 drug-covered stents, in order to eliminate all greater-than-50% stenoses. Patients’ data were collected from hospital case histories and e-Biomatrix PMR questionnaire. Decisions regarding whether to use Biolimus A9 stents during percutaneous coronary intervention were made by the respective operators. The rate of complication after stenting was evaluated when stenosis was eliminated or reduced to 30% or TIMI 3 fow was determined. Results. Out of 216 patients included in the study, 151 were males (69.91%) and 30.09% (65) were fe- males. Mean of age of patients was 60.2 ± 10.1 years; 19% of patients had diagnosed diabetes. The success rate of implanting Biolimus A9 stents was 100% with no complications during hospital stay. Key words: Biolimus, stents, coronary artery disease Med Res J 2016; 1 (2): 92–94 Corresponding author: Robertas Pranevičius LSMU SA Tel.: 861290437 E-mail: pranevicius.robertas@gmail.com Medical Research Journal 2016; Volume 1, Number 2, 92–94 10.5603/MRJ.2016.0015 Copyright © 2016 Via Medica ISSN 2451–2591 Introduction Stenting is a widespread procedure for patients suffering from coronary artery disease. The possibility of using drug-covered stents has improved stenting safety and treatment efficiency. The use of second-gen- eration Biolimus drug-covered A9 stents is associated with reduced risk of stent thrombosis when compared with first-generation ones. Drug-eluting stents (DES) have greatly reduced the risk of restenosis compared with bare-metal stents and have become the standard of care for patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). However, the durable polymer within the vessel is considered responsible for ongoing in- flammation, leading to late complications such as stent thrombosis. From these innovations, the second-gener- ation everolimus-eluting stent (EES) using a biocompat- ible durable polymer (fluorinated copolymer) with thin strut (81 mm) and the third-generation biolimus-eluting stent (BES) using an abluminally coated biodegrad- able polymer (polylactic acid) with relatively thick strut (112 mm) are currently considered the safest DESs. PCI is the preferred treatment for patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) [1, 2]. In both elective and primary PCIs, DES showed reduced restenosis rates compared with bare metal stents, but still it is not clear whether late restenosis is possible [3–6]. Because AMI is a predictor of thrombotic stent complications occurring late after DES implantation in the presence of a high thrombus burden, careful consideration of both the risks and benefits of DES is necessary, especially in the clinical practice for AMI patients [7, 8]. The biode- gradable polymer BES (BioMatrix, Biosensors; Nobori, Terumo) is composed of stainless steel alloy and an abluminally-coated biodegradable polymer eluting Bi- olimus A9, a highly lipophilic analogue of sirolimus. Use of second-generation Biolimus drug-covered A9 stents is associated with reduced risk of stent thrombosis com-