DRUG-COATED STENTS EQUALLY EFFECTIVE

It's not unusual to hear about a heart patient who's had a stent inserted to keep blocked arteries open. The tiny mesh cylinders have been used since 1995, and newer drug-coated versions were first approved in 2003. Until recently, doctors haven't known which of the two approved drug-coated stents work better -- Cypher made by Johnson & Johnson or Taxus by Boston Scientific. Sanger Clinic cardiologist Charles Simonton put together the first multi-center registry of more than 6,000 patients treated at eight hospitals, including Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte. Simonton's registry, paid for by the stent manufacturers, found no difference between the two stents.

The Charlotte Observer (http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/living/health/13272413.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp)