The recently FDA approved fully dissolving stent disappears after the treated artery is healed
Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center is the only hospital from Miami to Jacksonville to commercially utilize the Abbott Absorb bioresorbable vascular scaffold in the treatment of coronary artery disease. The innovative device is inserted into a patient’s clogged artery to keep it open and restore blood flow, and then gradually disappears in about three years. It is made of naturally dissolving material and is designed to reduce the risk of future blockages that can occur with traditional metal stents.
With the addition of this new treatment option, Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center offers hope to those suffering from a heart condition that affects 15 million people in the United States and is a leading cause of death worldwide. While metal stents are permanent implants and can restrict vessel motion, the Absorb stent is made of a dissolving polymer, similar to dissolving sutures, allowing the artery to pulse and flex naturally.
“As one of the major centers of cardiac care in the area, Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center is proud to currently be one of only six hospitals in Florida offering this groundbreaking device,” said CEO Jeffrey M. Welch. “We are dedicated to the treatment of coronary artery disease and continuously strive to stay at the forefront of new advancements that can have an impact on our patients’ lives.”
According to published studies, the Absorb bioresorbable stent has demonstrated comparable short-term and mid-term outcomes to the leading metallic stent, Abbott’s Xience drug eluting stent. Since there is no metal involved, the treated artery can potentially reacquire its normal shape, allowing the vessel to grow.
"The Absorb bioresorbable stent treats coronary artery disease without committing people to a permanent metal implant—giving them peace of mind and helping them get back to their daily lives without the concern of having a permanent metallic implant,” said Deepak Nath, Ph.D., senior vice president, vascular, Abbott. “We’re very excited to bring the promise of Absorb to patients in the United States."
As the first hospital in Palm Beach County and the Treasure Coast to perform open-heart surgery, The Heart and Vascular Institute at Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center remains one of the area’s top heart hospitals. With a team that consists of highly skilled cardiologists, cardiothoracic surgeons, nurses, physical therapists, respiratory therapists, dieticians, pharmacists and other clinical staff, the hospital has performed over 16,000 open-heart surgeries and more than 100,000 cardiac catheterizations to date.
To ensure optimal patient selection and implant technique, Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center’s interventional cardiology team underwent extensive training on the new Absorb device. For more information about the hospital’s Heart and Vascular Institute, please visit www.pbgmc.com/ourservices/heart.
