WASHINGTON – Stents have long been used in patients with blocked arteries, but they didn’t always work for diabetics, according to doctors.
Dr. Ron Waksman is the Associate Director of Cardiology at Medstar Washington Hospital Center and says when it comes to heart surgery, diabetic patients must be treated with caution.
“We had to send a lot of those patients to surgery,” Waksman said, “We were frustrated with the treatment we had before.”
That’s partially why Medstar Washington Hospital Center took part in a trial of a new stent for diabetics with a special drug-infused coating.
Once it got FDA approval, Waksman became the first doctor in the Washington area to implant the device in a patient.
“We think with this stent it has opened a new window of opportunity,” Waksman said.
He says so far, patients who have received the new stent are doing very well, with few if any complications.
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