ABSTRACT
WHY IS BENCH TESTING OF CORONARY BIFURCATION STENTING TECHNIQUES IMPORTANT? PCI for coronary bifurcation lesions has been associated with high restenosis rates in the bare metal stent (BMS) era (1); however, the introduction of drug-eluting stents (DES) have led to significant reduction in restenosis and target lesion revascularization in bifurcation lesions (2-7). However, the risk of acute compromise and/or delayed restenosis in the ostium of the side branch (SB) remains an issue particularly in the “at risk” bifurcations (i.e., true bifurcation lesions with severe ostial SB lesion and/or wide bifurcation angle, particularly when the SB supplies a large myocardial territory).
