The Randomized Freeway Stent Study: Drug-Eluting Balloons Outperform Standard Balloon Angioplasty for Postdilatation of Nitinol Stents in the SFA and PI Segment.

PURPOSE: The prospective randomized multicenter Freeway study evaluated the possible hemodynamic and clinical benefits of primary stent insertion followed by percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) with drug-eluting balloons (DEB) over post-stent insertion PTA with standard balloons in the treatment of symptomatic femoropopliteal arteriosclerotic lesions. METHODS: In total, 204 patients in 13 centers in Germany and Austria were enrolled and randomized to primary stenting followed by either FREEWAY™ drug-eluting balloon or standard PTA balloon angioplasty. The primary endpoint was the rate of clinically driven target lesion revascularization (TLR) at 6 months; the secondary endpoints include TLR rate at 12 months and primary patency, shift in Rutherford classification, ankle-brachial index (ABI) and major adverse events (MAE) at 6 and 12 months. Lesion characteristics and vessel patency were analyzed by an independent and blinded corelab. RESULTS: At 6-month and 12-month follow-up, TLR rate was lower in the DEB arm compared to standard PTA but did not reach statistical significance (4.1% vs. 9.0% p = 0.234 and 7.9% vs. 17.7% p = 0.064, respectively). Primary patency was significantly better for patients treated with the DEB at 6 months (90.3% vs. 69.8% p = 0.001) and 12 months (77.4% vs. 61.0% p = 0.027). Improvement in Rutherford classifications was likewise significantly better for patients in the DEB group at 6 (94.9% vs. 84.3% p = 0.027) and 12 months (95.5% vs. 79.9% p = 0.003). The percentage of patients with an improved ABI of 1.0-1.2 was significantly higher in the DEB group compared to the PTA group at 6 months (55.3% vs. 35.3%; p = 0.015) but without significant difference at 12 months (48.2% vs. 32.9%; p = 0.055). At 6 months, rate of major adverse events (MAE) was 1% in both arms, and at 12 months 2.2% for the DEB and 3.8% for the PTA group. CONCLUSION: The Freeway Stent Study shows that the usage of DEB as a restenosis prophylaxis seems to be safe and feasible. The 12-month follow-up results give a clear sign in favor of the DEB group.

Coating of intravascular balloon with paclitaxel prevents constrictive remodeling of the dilated porcine femoral artery due to inhibition of intimal and media fibrosis.

Here we investigated how a coating of intravascular balloon with paclitaxel (drug-coated balloon; DCB, Freeway™) impacted porcine peripheral artery vascular function and remodeling. Domestic swine (n = 54) underwent percutaneous overstretch balloon dilation of femoral and iliac arteries, controlled by angiography and optical coherence tomography (OCT). Paclitaxel tissue uptake was measured at 1 h and 1, 3, and 9 days post-dilation. At these time-points and at 32 ± 2 days, vascular function of the dilated arteries was assessed using the organ chamber model. Neointimal growth and remodeling indices were determined using OCT and histology at 32 ± 2 days. Intima and media fibrosis were quantified by picrosirius red staining. Post-inflation femoral artery tissue drug levels were 460 ± 214, 136 ± 123, 14 ± 6, and 0.1 ± 0.1 ng/mg at 1 h and 1, 3, and 9 days, respectively. Compared to plain balloon, Freeway™ resulted in a significantly smaller neointimal area (P < 0.05), less tunica intima (8.0 ± 5.4 vs 14.2 ± 4.7 %) and media fibrosis (15.6 ± 7.7 vs 24.5 ± 5.4 %), and less femoral artery constrictive remodeling (remodeling index: 1.08 ± 0.08 vs 0.94 ± 0.08). The DCB was associated with significantly increased vasoconstrictor tone and endothelium-dependent vasodilation impairment shortly after post-overstretch injury. Overall, DCB dilation of peripheral arteries resulted in high drug uptake into arterial tissue. Compared with the plain balloon, the DCB was associated with decreased vessel wall fibrosis after balloon overstretch injury, and reduced degrees of constrictive remodeling and neointimal hyperplasia.

Paclitaxel-coated balloon for the treatment of drug-eluting stent restenosis: subanalysis results from the Valentines I trial.

OBJECTIVES: To analyze the effect of paclitaxel-coated balloon (PCB) treatment on patients with drug-eluting stent (DES) restenosis. BACKGROUND: In the Valentines I trial, treatment of coronary in-stent restenosis was effective and safe with the second-generation DIOR® PCB. METHODS: Valentines I prospectively enrolled 250 patients with in-stent restenosis (ISR); 76 patients (30.4%) had restenosis of a previous paclitaxel or limus DES. Patients underwent balloon angioplasty followed by PCB treatment. Clinical outcomes of patients with paclitaxel-eluting DES restenosis (n=34; 41 lesions) and limus-eluting (sirolimus, everolimus and zotarolimus) DES restenosis (n=42; 43 lesions) treated with DIOR® PCB were compared. RESULTS: Baseline characteristics were similar. There were more diffuse lesions >20mm treated in paclitaxel- compared to limus-eluting DES restenosis (50% vs. 26.8%, p=0.032). Number of PCB used per patient (1.08±0.31 overall), mean PCB diameter (2.99±0.42mm overall), mean PCB length (24.4±11.9mm overall), and bailout stenting (2.4% vs. 4.7%) were similar (p=NS). At mean follow-up of 231±43days, major adverse cardiac events was 0% vs. 23.8% in paclitaxel- vs. limus-eluting DES restenosis (p=0.002), driven mainly by less target vessel revascularization (0% vs. 21.4%, p=0.004). Target lesion revascularization was 0% vs. 16.7% for paclitaxel- vs. limus-eluting DES restenosis (p=0.015). CONCLUSION: In Valentines I, PCB use was more effective in patients with paclitaxel DES restenosis compared to limus DES restenosis, achieving better mid-term clinical outcomes. This suggests the efficacy of localized paclitaxel delivery to overcome paclitaxel resistance but not limus resistance due to different mechanisms of DES failure.

Valvuloplasty with a paclitaxel-eluting balloon prevents restenosis in an experimental animal model of aortic stenosis.

BACKGROUND AND AIM OF THE STUDY: Restenosis occurs invariably within 12 months following balloon valvuloplasty (BAV) in calcific aortic valve disease (CAVD), and is a limiting factor of this treatment. Cellular proliferation secondary to balloon injury is thought to play a pivotal role in the mechanism of restenosis. The study aim was to investigate the potential role of a paclitaxel-eluting valvuloplasty balloon to mitigate the progression of restenosis in an animal model of CAVD. METHODS: Fifty-three rabbits were fed with an aortic stenosis (AS)-inducing diet (cholesterol 0.5% plus vitamin D3 50,000 IU/day) for three months. The surviving animals (n = 40) underwent echocardiographic and invasive assessments, followed by valvuloplasty, randomly using either a paclitaxel-coated (3 µg/mm2) or a plain balloon. At one month after BAV, the surviving animals (n = 28) underwent repeat assessments, followed by histology and micro-computed tomography (MicroCT) analysis of the aortic valve. RESULTS: The baseline and post-BAV transvalvular gradients, aortic valve area (AVA), left ventricular stroke work loss (SWL) and aortic valve resistance (AVR) were similar between the groups (14 rabbits were assigned to paclitaxel-eluting, and 14 to plain balloon). Significant differences between the groups were observed at one-month post-BAV, which was suggestive of diminished restenosis in the paclitaxel-balloon group (mean maximum transvalvular pressure gradient 7.7 ± 7.7 versus 3.6 ± 3.7 mmHg, p = 0.08; AVA 0.91 ± 0.59 versus 0.55 ± 0.22 cm2, p = 0.04; SWL 3.5 ± 4.0 versus 8.6 ± 8.0%, p = 0.047; AVR 86 ± 71 versus 177 ± 137 dynes/s/cm(-5), p = 0.039). Histology demonstrated decreased leaflet thickness (0.60 ± 0.15 versus 0.71 ± 0.17 mm, p = 0.03), proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) staining (grade 1.53 ± 0.04 versus 2.24 ± 0.55, p = 0.049), and calcification in the paclitaxel-balloon group. CONCLUSION: Use of a paclitaxel-eluting valvuloplasty balloon in an animal model of AS resulted in attenuated restenosis, secondary to decrease in valve proliferation and calcification.

Drug-coated balloons for de novo coronary lesions: results from the Valentines II trial.

AIMS: This study aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of using the second-generation DIOR drug-coated balloons (DCB) as an adjunct to plain old balloon angioplasty (POBA) for the treatment of de novo coronary lesions. METHODS AND RESULTS: Valentines II was designed as a prospective, multicentre, multinational, web-based registry. Eligible patients with stable or unstable angina, and/or documented ischaemia on stress testing with de novo lesions of >50% stenosis were prospectively enrolled. Patients underwent POBA followed by DCB treatment. In cases of suboptimal angiographic success (Thrombolysis In Myocardial Infarction [TIMI] flow <3 and/or residual stenosis of >30%), additional bail-out bare metal stenting (BMS) was left at the operator's discretion. The primary endpoint was major adverse cardiac events (MACE; all-cause death, myocardial infarction [MI], target vessel revascularisation [TVR] and vessel thrombosis) at six to nine months. A subset of patients underwent angiographic follow-up. One hundred and nine lesions in 103 patients were treated. Mean age was 62.6±10.2 years; 79.6% were men. Lesion stenosis at baseline and post treatment was 83.3±9.5% and 10.4±10.6%, respectively. Procedural success was 99%. Coronary dissections occurred in 14.7%, and bail-out BMS implantation was required in 13 patients (11.9%). Mean follow-up was 7.5 months; follow-up rate was 99%. Cumulative MACE at follow-up was 8.7%, with 1% all-cause death, 1% MI, 6.9% overall TVR, of which 2.9% were target lesion revascularisations, and no vessel thrombosis. Angiographic follow-up on a subset of patients (n=35) demonstrated late luminal loss of 0.38±0.39 mm for both the in-balloon and in-segment analyses. CONCLUSIONS: The Valentines II trial demonstrates the feasibility of using a second-generation DIOR DCB as adjunct to POBA in de novo coronary lesions. This approach achieved high procedural success with acceptable rates of bail-out stenting and low MACE rates at mid-term follow-up, and offers an attractive alternative for revascularisation of patients who are unsuitable candidates for drug-eluting stents.

The Valentines Trial: results of the first one week worldwide multicentre enrolment trial, evaluating the real world usage of the second generation DIOR paclitaxel drug-eluting balloon for in-stent restenosis treatment.

AIM: To assess the safety and efficacy of the second generation DIOR paclitaxel drug-eluting balloon (DEB) for in-stent restenosis in a real world setting in a prospective single-arm registry with 8-month clinical outcomes. METHODS AND RESULTS: In this "real world", international prospective registry, patients with in-stent restenosis (bare-metal stent and drug-eluting stent) were enrolled- in a unique study design- with a one week enrolment period, spread over 104 centres worldwide. Patients underwent predilatation with a regular balloon, with subsequent DEB inflation in the target lesion. Additional stenting of the target lesion was left to the operators discretion in case of suboptimal angiographic success (TIMI flow <3 and/or residual stenosis >30%). The primary endpoint was 6-9-month major adverse cardiac events (MACE: all cause death, myocardial infarction, and target vessel revascularisation). A total of 250 evaluable patients were enrolled in a large web-based clinical research form and treated with the second generation DIOR DEB. Of these, 244 had 6-9 month clinical follow-up, with a mean follow-up time of 7.5 months. The cumulative MACE rate at follow-up was 11.1%, with 3 (1.2%) cardiac deaths, 1 (0.4%) non-cardiac death, 5 (2.0%) myocardial infarctions of which 2 (0.8%) periprocedural, 21 (8.6%) target vessel revascularisations, of which 18 (7.4%) target lesion revascularisations. CONCLUSIONS: In-stent restenosis treatment with the second generation DIOR DEB is safe and feasible, with high angiographic success and low target lesion revascularisation and overall MACE rates. Moreover this new and unique method of high speed and short duration multicentre study enrolment was very successful.