This is especially the case if the patients are young, have multiple blocks & have conditions that may make angioplasty to implant drug-eluting stents ineffective

At a time when coronary diseases are on the rise in India and globally, special drug-coated balloons are emerging as a better alternative to stents in a variety of coronary artery diseases, according to two renowned Italian cardiologists. This is especially the case if the patients are young, have multiple blocks, and have conditions that may make angioplasty to implant drug-eluting stents ineffective.

Dr Bernardo Cortese, Director of Cardiac Cath Lab and Interventional Cardiology at Clinical San Carlo in Milan and Prof Antonio Colombo, Director of Humanitas Research Hospital in Milan are in India for a series of workshops and educational sessions on the drug-coated balloon technique for percutaneous coronary intervention in hospitals across India.

Speaking at an educational session on “DCB in PCI – Current Concept & Future” organised by leading medical devices company Concept Medical and C3 Research Foundation in Chennai, the two experts from Italy went into deep detail about drug-coated balloons, a relatively new concept in treating coronary artery diseases. The session was attended by the city’s top interventional cardiologists as well as medical students.

“Drug-coated balloons are emerging as an alternative to stents in several coronary artery disease cases. This includes when a patient has multiple blockages in the arteries or when a longer stent is required,” said Prof Colombo.

In his presentation, Dr Cortese, who oversaw an academic clinical programme that included several international studies, spoke about the latest results of the largest drug-coated balloon registry data.

“Instead of inserting a stent at the site of the disease, the drug is released through the mechanism that holds the arteries together and ensures blood flow. Such balloons can be used for up to 70% of procedures in expert hands, but no less than 40%,” Dr Cortese said.

“The revolutionary technique involving drug and carrier complex is designed to reach the inner layers of the vessel walls and act as a reservoir for the long-term release of medicine that prevents re-narrowing of the coronary artery,” said Dr Manish Doshi, MD – Concept Medical & Inventor – World’s First Sirolimus Drug Coated Balloon.