TALLAHASSEE Fla.-- The cardiology team at Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare (TMH) has become the first in the state of Florida, and one of the first in the country, to offer and deploy a new dissolvable stent for coronary artery disease that they say will literally disappear over time.
Recently approved by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA), the Absorb bioresorbable vascular scaffold (stent) was made to open clogged arteries to restore blood flow; then it gradually dissolves in the body, reducing the risk of future blockages.
TMH was selected as one of just 11 facilities in the United States to commercially offer this new technology.
"Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare, Southern Medical Group and Tallahassee Research Institute collaborate regularly to bring new clinical cardiovascular research to our area," said Patty Knap, RN, CCRC, Director of Research at Tallahassee Research Institute. "These three organizations were involved in two research trials around the Absorb stent, which helped pave the way for the new technology to be available for commercial use."
According to TMH the Absorb stent, developed and manufactured by Abbott, is made of naturally dissolving materials, similar to dissolving sutures or stitches.
"We were the sixth hospital in the country to place the Absorb stent, continuing our position as a leader in the Southeast, and indeed the nation, for exceptional heart care and research," explained Wayne Batchelor, MD, MHS, FACC, FSCAI, Interventional Cardiologist at
Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare and President of Tallahassee Research Institute. "The Absorb stent is a novel therapy for patients with coronary artery disease and one of the latest treatment options we are proud to offer our patients."
Researchers say the stent dissolves almost completely in about three years, after it has serves its purpose of keeping a clogged artery open and unblocked.
To make sure they could provide patients with the best care, TMH says their interventional cardiology team underwent extensive training for this new device and participated in the pre-approval clinical trials.
