Coronary-stent placement compared with balloon angioplasty

To the Editor: The Benestent¹ and Stent Restenosis (STRESS)² studies (Aug. 25 issue) raise important questions about strategies for coronary-stent placement. Should coronary stents be considered for all patients with new focal lesions in large coronary arteries that have a high likelihood of dissection,³ or should they be used only on a conditional basis if balloon angioplasty does not achieve the desired degree of dilation? Although the randomized studies¹,² showed that coronary-stent placement reduced the rate of clinical restenosis, the only component of the composite end point that was favorably affected was the need for a second intervention involving…