She noticed that the arteries in which the drug-coated stents were implanted never seemed to heal.
Both the drugs and polymers on the stents may be causing the problems, she says.
"Ron, there won't be any stents this time, they'll cut me wide open, " he said.
's good press has come from drug-coated stents, which are used to prop open clogged arteries.
Of course, if any problems with Cordis stents came to light, SurModics would suffer.
It and many researchers say the drug-coated stents' ability to vastly reduce reclogging outweighs the risks.
Heart stents may be hyped, but this quarter pharmaceuticals shine, with one key drug growing 87%.
But its medical-device division was struggling because of the plummeting market share in coronary stents.
Both outfits make coronary stents, wire-mesh devices used to keep arteries open, and other medical devices.
Metal mesh tubes called stents are used to keep the arteries from closing again.
But both Goldstein and Gruber see growth in the stents business in the next few years.
These drug-eluting stents yield a marked reduction in early reblockage compared with bare metal stents.
Its stents are more like Swiss cheese, full of tiny holes that are filled with medication.
For instance, they were less likely to have had their clogged arteries propped open with stents.
What's more, the problem seems to emerge after the stents have been in place for years.
Physicians who back carotid stents argue the older research shouldn't be dismissed so easily.
About 529, 000 leg stents were placed last year, up from 386, 000 five years ago.
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The first stents were used alone, followed in the late 1990s by the addition of radioactive treatments.
He says that he expects "some reduction in use" of drug-coated stents based on the panel's deliberations.
In recent years, some stents have medications embedded in them designed to further prevent blockage after placement.
But Medtronic gets plenty of revenue from spinal implants, heart stents, insulin pumps and surgical devices, too.
Boston Scientific was once a spectacular growth story as the company exploited its early advantages in stents.
In the past few months, attention has been drawn to a potentially big drawback with the drug-coated stents.
Instead, the study tracked patients from a national database--and the patients who got the drug-coated stents were sicker.
But even if Cook's paclitaxel-coated stents prove medically effective, the plan may not save the day for Guidant.
It currently rules the market for coronary stents, wire-mesh devices that are used to prop open clogged arteries.
But others will likely argue that the study should lead to a decrease in the use of stents.
Right now, Conor is developing stents that deliver exactly the same drug used in the Boston Scientific stents.
Health care is often driven by supply: A new cardiac center opens and suddenly more people need stents.
Some hope that potential safety problems with currently marketed stents won't be a problem with the Conor CoStar.
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