Percutaneous coronary intervention in diabetic patients: should choice of stents be influenced?

Patients with diabetes mellitus are prone to a diffuse and rapidly progressive form of coronary artery disease. As a result, diabetic patients undergoing coronary revascularization are at higher risk of cardiovascular events compared with nondiabetic patients. Due to marked advances of stent device technology and adjunctive pharmacology, percutaneous coronary intervention has been regarded as an efficient revascularization strategy in diabetic patients. Numerous randomized trials and large observational registries have compared the efficacy and safety of bare-metal stents and drug-eluting stents, as well as several DE platforms. This article systematically reviews the cumulative evidence from key clinical studies and tries to help guide the physician in making informed decisions on the optimal stent type for patients with diabetes mellitus.