TRANSFORM II
Sirolimus-coated Balloon Versus Drug-eluting Stent in Native Coronary Vessels (TRANSFORM II)
In patients with de novo native coronary lesions in vessels of 2.0 to 3.5 mm, a sirolimus-coated balloon was non-inferior to an everolimus-eluting stent for target lesion failure at 12 months.
In selected de novo lesions in vessels of 2.0 to 3.5 mm, a sirolimus-coated balloon with bailout stenting met non-inferiority to an everolimus-eluting stent for target lesion failure at 12 months, with a low bailout rate and no lesion thrombosis. The trial was open label, event rates were lower than expected, and the wide confidence interval for the hazard ratio reflects few events, while any target lesion revascularisation was more than twice as frequent with the balloon. The investigators state that the findings apply only to lesions suitable for successful preparation and not to severely calcified, left main, thrombotic or STEMI lesions, and follow-up to five years is still needed for late device-related events. The figures come from a press release by Concept Medical, the device maker and grant funder, rather than the peer-reviewed paper, so full secondary, subgroup and procedural data are not yet available.