Does optimal lesion preparation reduce the amount of acute recoil of the Absorbe BVS? Insights from a real-world population.

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate the acute recoil of the ABSORB bioabsorbable vascular scaffold (BVS) and its relationship with procedural characteristics in a real world population.

BACKGROUND

In vivo acute recoil of the BVS was evaluated in selected patients.

METHODS

Acute recoil was studied with videodensitometry in a consecutive series of patients treated by means of a BVS, and the results were compared with those obtained in subjects receiving an everolimus-eluting stent (EES). Recoil was defined as the difference between the mean diameter of the fully expanded balloon on which the device was mounted (or the mean diameter of the post-dilatation balloon), and the mean luminal diameter of the treated segment immediately after the final inflation.

RESULTS

Recoil was assessed in 106 lesions treated with a BVS and 71 treated with an EES. The absolute and percent recoil of the BVS were significantly greater (0.32 ± 0.16 mm and 10% ± 5% vs. 0.17 ± 0.07 and 5% ± 3%; P < 0.001). Multiple regression analysis showed that BVS use was associated with acute recoil (β = 0.477; P<0.001). Suboptimal lesion preparation (residual stenosis after balloon angioplasty >20%) (β = 0.217; P = 0.027) and a small vessel reference diameter (β = 0.335; P = 0.002) were associated with increased BVS but not EES recoil.

CONCLUSIONS

In unselected patients, the acute recoil of the BVS was significantly greater than that of the metal EES. In the BVS group, residual stenosis after predilatation correlated with percent recoil, and so optimal lesion preparation seems to be mandatory in order to maximize the mechanical properties of the scaffold.