Impact of Stent Platform on Shear Stress Distribution and Subsequent Vessel Healing After Drug-eluting Stent Implantation (SHEAR DES)

Background: Distribution of wall shear stress (WSS) may be different according to stent designs. The impact of WSS after stent implantation may impact future vessel healing after current generation drug-eluting stents implantation. Although previous studies used IVUS (intravascular ultrasound) and angiography to determine WSS from computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations, new methods using higher resolution OCT (optical coherence tomography) are warranted to further evaluate the impact of stent design on WSS with current generation drug-eluting stents.

Methods: For these purpose, we will enroll a total of 30 patients with stable angina who are scheduled for percutaneous coronary intervention. Those patients were randomized to thin-strut (81μm) 2-link Promus element (PE: n=10), thin-strut (81μm) 3-link Xience Prime (XP: n=10), or thick-strut (145μm) 2-link Nobori stents (NO: n=10) and underwent OCT and coronary CT angiography (CTA) after stenting. Post stent WSS was calculated using CFD simulations based on patient-specific reconstructed 3D arteries created by the fusion of OCT and CTA data, normalized using WSS in the proximal unstented region. Also, follow-up angiography and OCT are performed for the assessment of vessel healing as well as WSS distribution 8months after stent implantation.