Study of blood flow through stents suggests that future designs with thinner and fewer linkages will decrease risk for restenosis after the stent is placed, according to an article in the July issue of the Journal of Applied Physiology. Currently, about 30 percent of stent patients develop restenosis.

“Currently, eliminating restenosis is the holy grail of catheter-based procedures such as angioplasty and stenting,” said John LaDisa, Ph.D., lead author of the study. “Current research has not identified all the contributing factors to restenosis. Now our research has shown that a stent’s design and its alteration of the blood vessel anatomy influences blood flow in ways that can contribute to restenosis. Also, restenosis rates vary according to an individual’s vessel geometry at the site of stent insertion.”

Using three-dimensional fluid dynamic modeling, LaDisa investigated specific factors of stent geometry that contribute to or minimize the likelihood of restenosis. “We tested the hypothesis that differences in the geometric design of an implanted stent -- differences in number, width and thickness of the linkages that compose a stent -- affects the forces exerted on cells lining the vessel walls and ultimately influences restenosis rates.”

He added, “Our investigation revealed that several factors, including the thickness and number of stent struts affect restenosis. The results suggest that future stent designs that reduce strut number and thickness will be less likely to subject a patient’s vessel to the physiological events associated with restenosis.”