( compared tothe risk profile of the p...)Cypher Sirolimus-Eluting Coronary Stent Had Similar Results to,,,Bypass Surgery and Better Outcomes Than Bare Metal Stents in,,,Subgroup Analysis of Diabetic Patients With Multivessel Coronary,,,Disease,Health

"Patients with multivessel disease and diabetes represent some of the most complex cases to treat," said Keith D Dawkins, M.D., F.R.C.P., F.A.C.C., from Southampton University Hospital, who presented the analysis at EuroPCR 2007. "These findings suggest that the CYPHER(R) Stent may be a viable, less invasive treatment alternative for these very challenging cases."

After three years of follow-up, the overall patient population treated with the CYPHER(R) Stent in the ARTS II Study also continued to show similar rates of freedom from MACCE than the patients treated with bypass surgery in the ARTS I Study. Specifically, 80.6 percent of the overall patient population who received the CYPHER(R) Stent remained free of MACCE, compared to 83.8 percent of the patients who underwent bypass surgery. Additionally, the CYPHER(R) Stent performed considerably better than the ARTS I BMS arm in the same endpoint, as 66.0 percent of the patients who received a BMS did not experience a MACCE event after three years. The difference between the CYPHER(R) Stent arm and the BMS arm reached statistical significance (p < 0.001).

"Close to 30 years ago, balloon angioplasty transformed the treatment paradigm for patients with coronary artery disease," said David E. Kandzari, M.D., F.A.C.C., F.S.C.A.I., Chief Medical Officer, Cordis Cardiology Division of Cordis Corporation. "This three-year analysis suggests that balloon angioplasty combined with the CYPHER(R) Stent may be a viable alternative to bypass surgery for non-diabetic and diabetic patients with multivessel coronary disease."

The ARTS II Study investigators also reported stent thrombosis rates using the Academic Research Consortium (ARC) definition. The definite stent thrombosis rate for the CYPHER(R) Stent in the diabetic patient population 30 days after implantation was signi
'"/>