PCI in patients with diabetes: Role of the Cre8 drug-eluting stent

Patients with diabetes have poor outcomes compared to the general patient population when undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention. The Cre8™ (Alvimedica) drug-eluting stent (DES) has unique features that may improve clinical outcomes in patients with diabetes. These include abluminal reservoir technology, a proprietary polymer-free drug-release system consisting of reservoirs on the stent's outer surface that control and direct drug release exclusively towards the vessel wall, and the Amphilimus™ formulation, which enables enhanced drug tissue permeation, utilising fatty acid transport pathways. This is particularly advantageous in diabetic patients, since increased uptake of fatty acid occurs in diabetic cells. Furthermore, mTOR inhibitors (-limus drugs), which are utilised in DESs, are relatively ineffective in diabetic cells. Clinical efficacy and safety of the Cre8™ in patients with diabetes has been demonstrated in a number of clinical trials and real-world studies, and further studies are on-going.