UPMC Offers New Heart Treatment for Stent Patients

October 29, 2024

HARRISBURG, Pa. – UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute in Central Pa. has treated its first patient with a new therapy for in-stent restenosis (ISR), a condition in which scar tissue forms inside the stent, causing a previously opened coronary artery to narrow again. The team was the first to participate in a national clinical trial evaluating the technology back in 2021.

This drug-coated balloon (DCB) therapy is designed to prevent reoccurrence of ISR by delivering a drug via balloon catheter to the affected artery after it has been mostly cleared of harmful plaques. This innovative less invasive treatment, approved by the FDA in March 2024, offers a promising solution for patients experiencing recurrent chest pain and adverse cardiac events due to ISR.

William Griffie of Mechanicsburg, Pa., is the first patient to receive DCB therapy at the UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute in Central Pa. A Vietnam War veteran, Griffie underwent coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery at UPMC Harrisburg two decades ago. He has been on at-home peritoneal dialysis due to end-stage kidney disease and developed a port infection that required hospitalization. During his stay, cardiologists at UPMC discovered that one of his two bypass grafts had become blocked. Given his health conditions, traditional heart surgery was not an option. However, the medical team was optimistic and determined that Griffie was an excellent candidate for the less invasive DCB therapy.

“It's heartwarming to see advances in medical treatments providing new hope for patients like William,” said Thach Nguyen, M.D., interventional cardiologist, UPMC, who successfully completed the first case at UPMC Harrisburg. “The introduction of this therapy represents a significant step forward in our ability to treat in-stent restenosis, providing our patients with improved outcomes and a better quality of life.”

ISR can affect up to 20% of patients after stent placement and is challenging to treat. Traditional treatment methods often add another metallic layer inside the old stent, which can worsen the problem and make future treatments more complicated. DCB therapy avoids the addition of an extra metallic layer, thus reducing the risk of ISR happening again.

“This therapy provides a new approach to reopening the vessel and reducing the risk of ISR reoccurrence without adding more stents or treating the vessel with radiation therapy, which has been used in the past,” said, William Bachinsky, M.D., F.A.C.C., F.S.C.A.I., former chairman, cardiovascular research program, UPMC and the interventionalist who performed the first DCB procedure in the US in 2021.

UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute in central Pennsylvania were the first in the region to perform open-heart surgery and the first to perform coronary artery balloon angioplasty. Other firsts include the implantation of a drug-eluting coronary stent, percutaneous (minimally invasive) aortic valve procedures (TAVR), and the implantation of an FDA-approved percutaneous mitral valve repair device.

For more information or to schedule an appointment at the UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute, visit UPMC.com/CentralPaHeart.