Outcomes of diabetics receiving bare-metal stents versus drug-eluting stents.

Objectives: We sought to determine if differences existed in in-hospital outcomes, long-term rates of target vessel revascularization (TVR), and/or long-term mortality trends between patients with diabetes mellitus undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with either a drug-eluting stent(s) (DES) or a bare metal stent(s) (BMS).

Background: Short- and long-term clinical outcomes of patients with diabetes mellitus undergoing PCI with DES versus BMS remain inconsistent between randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) and observational studies.

Methods: Data were collected prospectively on diabetics undergoing PCI with either DES or BMS from January 2000 to June 2008. Demographic information, medical histories, in-hospital outcomes, and long-term TVR and mortality trends were obtained for all patients.

Results: A total of 1,319 patients were included in the study. Diabetics receiving DES had a significant reduction in index admission MACE compared to diabetics receiving BMS. Using multivariable adjustment, after a mean follow-up of 2.5 years (maximum 5 years), diabetics who received DES had a 38% decreased risk of TVR compared to diabetics with BMS [HR 0.62 (95% CI: 0.43-0.90)]; diabetics with DES had an insignificant adjusted improvement in long-term survival compared to diabetics with BMS [HR 0.72 (95% CI: 0.52-1.00)]. These long-term survival and TVR rates were confirmed using propensity scoring.

Conclusions: The use of DES when compared with BMS among diabetics undergoing PCI is associated with significant improvement in long-term TVR, with an insignificant similar trend in all-cause mortality. The long-term results of this observational study are consistent with prior RCTs after adjusting for confounding variables.