Sustained patency and clinical improvement following treatment of atherosclerotic iliac artery disease using the Assurant cobalt iliac balloon-expandable stent system.

PURPOSE

To report the outcome of the ACTIVE (Use of the Assurant Cobalt Iliac Stent System in the Treatment of Iliac Vessel Disease) study (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00753337), which was designed to determine the safety and effectiveness of the next-generation Assurant cobalt chromium balloon-expandable stent in symptomatic patients with iliac occlusive disease.

METHODS

This prospective, multicenter, single-arm study enrolled 123 symptomatic (Fontaine class II or III) patients (69 men; mean age 65.5±10.6 years) with 159 de novo or restenotic lesions (length ≤100 mm) in the common or external iliac arteries. Objective measures of outcome were ankle or toe-brachial indexes, Fontaine class, and duplex ultrasound evaluations collected before the procedure and at 1 and 9 months. The primary endpoint of major adverse events (MAE) at 9 months was defined as device- and procedure-related death, target limb loss, or clinically-driven target lesion or target vessel revascularization (TLR/TVR).

RESULTS

At 9 months, the rate of MAE was 0.8% with 1 TLR and 99.2% primary patency. There were no device- or procedure-related deaths or target limb amputations. The ankle-brachial index increased by 0.2±0.2 at 1 and 9 months. There was an improvement in the Fontaine classification of claudication for the majority of patients, accompanied by significant and sustained improvements in walking speed, distance, and stair climbing.

CONCLUSION

The balloon-expandable Assurant cobalt chromium iliac stent demonstrated an excellent safety profile and sustained patency associated with marked improvements in objective and functional measures of patency.