Drug-eluting stenting: the case for post-dilation.

In clinical practice, adequate stent deployment has an important effect on immediate and long-term results after percutaneous coronary interventions. In particular, suboptimal or incomplete stent expansion is associated with increased restenosis and target vessel revascularization rates and, especially with drug-eluting stents (DES), might also predispose to stent thrombosis. Notwithstanding the significant improvement in technique and materials in the last decade, adjunctive high-pressure balloon dilation is still necessary to improve the minimum stent area and the uniform volumetric stent expansion in a majority of the cases.