A Medical Device Daily

Boston Scientific (Natick, Massachusetts) reported the beginning of clinical trial enrollment in studies evaluating its third-generation paclitaxel-eluting coronary stent, the Taxus Element stent. The Taxus PERSEUS clinical program will collectively enroll about 1,500 patients at 100 U.S. and international centers. The Element stent features a platinum chromium alloy designed specifically for stents. This alloy, coupled with a new stent design, is designed to enable thinner struts, increased flexibility, and a lower profile while improving radial strength, recoil, and radiopacity. In addition, the stent platform incorporates new balloon technology, intended to improve upon the company’s Maverick balloon catheter technology.

“With the innovative design of the Taxus Element stent system, we anticipate seeing a significant advancement in the performance offered in a drug-eluting stent,” said Dean Kereiakes, MD, principal investigator of the study. “This new platform, designed for improved deliverability, should allow us to bring the long-term proven performance of the Taxus stent to even the most complex and challenging anatomy.”

“We are excited to begin evaluating the Taxus Element stent, the third in our deep pipeline of drug-eluting stents, a milestone unmatched by other companies,” said Hank Kucheman, senior VP and group president of Interventional Cardiology. “The platinum chromium alloy and new balloon technologies offered in this system are also being developed in an Everolimus version and is intended to serve as foundational technology in Boston Scientific’s dual-drug DES portfolio, including a drug-eluting bifurcation stent and next-generation everolimus- and paclitaxel-eluting stents.”