Boston Scientific has received FDA approval for the smallest drug eluting stent currently available, indicated for coronary vessels ≥ 2.25mm. The company plans to launch the TAXUS® Express²® Atom™ device to the US market in June.
More about the stent from Boston Sci:
Data from numerous clinical studies have shown that an estimated 10 percent of patients undergoing percutaneous coronary interventions have small vessels (<2.5 mm). Until recently, many physicians were inclined to implant bare-metal stents in these patients since they were the only approved stenting option for small vessels. Last year's launch of the TAXUS Express Atom Stent offered an alternative treatment choice for patients with small vessels who will now have the additional option of the TAXUS Liberte Atom Stent. The TAXUS Liberte Stent features design improvements over the Company's first-generation TAXUS Express Stent, including thinner struts to allow better stent deliverability and conformability, as well as uniform stent geometry for consistent lesion coverage and drug distribution.
Press release: FDA Approves Boston Scientific’s Next-Generation TAXUS® Liberte® Atom™ Stent System
Product page: TAXUS® Express²® Atom™ Paclitaxel-eluting Coronary Stent System