Bare-metal stent

Bare-metal stent
A bare-metal stent diagonally from the front
ICD-9-CM00.63, 36.06, 39.90

A bare-metal stent is a stent made of thin, uncoated (bare) metal wire that has been formed into a mesh-like tube. The first stents licensed for use in cardiac arteries were bare metal – often 316L stainless steel. More recent "second generation" bare-metal stents have been made of cobalt chromium alloy.[1] While plastic stents were first used to treat gastrointestinal conditions of the esophagus, gastroduodenum, biliary ducts, and colon, bare-metal stent advancements led to their use for these conditions starting in the 1990s.[2]

Drug-eluting stents are often preferred over bare-metal stents because the latter carry a higher risk of restenosis, the growth of tissue into the stent resulting in vessel narrowing.[3]

  1. ^ Nikam N et al. Advances in stent technologies and their effect on clinical efficacy and safety. Med Devices (Auckl). 2014 Jun 3;7:165-78. PMID 24940085 PMC 4051714
  2. ^ Park JS, Jeong S, Lee DH. Recent Advances in Gastrointestinal Stent Development. Clin Endosc. 2015 May; 48(3): 209–215. PMID 26064820 PMC 4461664
  3. ^ Palmerini T et al. Long-Term Safety of Drug-Eluting and Bare-Metal Stents: Evidence From a Comprehensive Network Meta-Analysis. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2015 Jun 16;65(23):2496-507. PMID 26065988. Lay summary