Drug-Eluting Stents vs. Bare Metal Stents In Saphenous Vein Graft Angioplasty

Patients who have undergone coronary bypass surgery have had a vein removed from the leg and implanted in the chest to "bypass" blockages in the coronary arteries. These veins are called saphenous vein grafts or SVGs. SVGs often develop blockages that can cause chest pain and heart attacks. SVG blockages can be opened by using small balloons and stents (metal coils that keep the artery open). Two types of stents are currently used: bare metal stents (BMS) and drug-eluting stents (DES). Both BMS and DES are made of metal. DES are also coated with a drug that releases into the wall of the blood vessel to prevent scar tissue from forming and re-narrowing the vessel. Both stents have advantages and disadvantages: DES require taking special blood thinners (called thienopyridines, such as clopidogrel or prasugrel) longer than bare metal stent and could have more bleeding but are also less likely to renarrow. Both BMS and DES are routinely being used in SVGs, but it is not known which one is better. Neither bare metal (except for an outdated model) nor drug-eluting stents are FDA approved for use in SVGs. The purpose of CSP#571 is to compare the outcomes after DES vs. BMS use in SVGs. In CSP#571 patients who need stenting of SVG blockages will be randomized to receive DES or BMS in a 1:1 ratio. Per standard practice, patients will receive 12 months of an open label thienopyridine if they have acute coronary syndrome (ACS), or if they have another clinical reason for needing the medication. Patients without ACS who receive DES also need to take 12 months of a thienopyridine whether or not they are in the study, but non-ACS patients who receive a BMS do not. In order to make sure patients do not know which stent they received, non-ACS patients who received BMS will receive 1 month of open label thienopyridine followed by 11 months of blinded placebo, while those who received DES will receive 1 month of open label thienopyridine followed by 11 months of blinded clopidogrel,