BACKGROUND: The number of surgical coronary revascularization procedures is static and even declining. Since the introduction of drug eluting stents the question arose whether this will have an impact on the spectrum of surgical coronary revascularization procedures. BYPASS SURGERY: Bypass surgery is a routine procedure for the treatment of coronary artery disease with good results. Studies have shown that there is a benefit in favor of surgery compared to interventional cardiologic procedures. DRUG-ELUTING STENTS: In recent studies a new generation of stents, drug-eluting stents, have proven to have a significant better patency rate than common stents. However, to date there are no studies which show a benefit compared to surgery given the same indication for treatment. CONCLUSION: Therefore, the question whether drug-eluting stents have an impact on the spectrum of bypass surgery cannot be fully answered at present.
BACKGROUND: The number of surgical coronary revascularization procedures is static and even declining. Since the introduction of drug eluting stents the question arose whether this will have an impact on the spectrum of surgical coronary revascularization procedures. BYPASS SURGERY: Bypass surgery is a routine procedure for the treatment of coronary artery disease with good results. Studies have shown that there is a benefit in favor of surgery compared to interventional cardiologic procedures. DRUG-ELUTING STENTS: In recent studies a new generation of stents, drug-eluting stents, have proven to have a significant better patency rate than common stents. However, to date there are no studies which show a benefit compared to surgery given the same indication for treatment. CONCLUSION: Therefore, the question whether drug-eluting stents have an impact on the spectrum of bypass surgery cannot be fully answered at present.