FDA Weighs Risks, Benefits of Drug-Coated Stents

FDA Weighs Risks, Benefits of Drug-Coated Stents NPR 12/7/06 "No one knows for sure why the coated stents cause these blood clots. But doctors are once again looking for a solution. One clue comes from a study at Duke University. Researchers reviewed the medical records of hundreds of people who got drug-coated stents at the medical center there.
All the patients took a drug called Plavix to reduce the chance that clots would form. That's standard practice. But patients who kept taking Plavix longer than six months were far less likely to die or have a heart attack. David Kong, a cardiologist at Duke, says that suggests that long-term use of Plavix could offset the risk of blood clots from coated stents. "

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