Coronary Sinus Stent: Could It Help in Refractory Chronic Stable Angina?

Refractory angina is a life-disabling disease, even with the discovery of antianginal drugs and the advances in revascularization surgically or percutaneously to improve symptoms. Over the last decade a renewal of interest in an old surgical modality of narrowing the coronary sinus has evolved. Although the surgical procedure idea was born in 1940 it was overshadowed by the development of coronary artery bypass graft and percutaneous interventions. Recently, a percutaneous approach of reducing the coronary sinus size has been developed and several clinical studies have been reported in refractory angina patients. We review the history of coronary sinus intervention, and explore coronary sinus stent possible mechanism of action, device design, and the clinical data supporting its use.