Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 5, 2026
Fabrication of Small Caliber Stent-grafts Using Electrospinning and Balloon Expandable Bare Metal Stents
Published on: October 26, 2016
The Future of Cardiovascular Stents: Bioresorbable and Integrated Biosensor Technology
Daniel Hoare1, Anubhav Bussooa1, Steven Neale2
1BHF Cardiovascular Research Centre University of Glasgow G12 8TA Glasgow Scotland.
Insights
Atherosclerosis, a leading cause of death, involves artery narrowing. This review explores advanced biosensing stents to prevent in-stent restenosis, a common complication of current treatments.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular medicine
- Biomedical engineering
- Nanotechnology
Background:
- Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading global cause of mortality, with atherosclerosis underlying two-thirds of these deaths.
- Atherosclerosis, or "furring of the arteries," is an age-dependent process exacerbated by lifestyle factors and genetics, often inadequately managed by current drugs.
- In-stent restenosis, a wound response causing re-narrowing of stented arteries due to smooth muscle cell hyperplasia, remains a significant clinical challenge.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review current stent technologies for treating blocked arteries.
- To explore the potential of novel biosensing devices for overcoming in-stent restenosis.
- To discuss the integration of biosensors into stents and future implantable medical devices within the Internet of Things framework.
Main Methods:
- Review of current literature on stent technology and in-stent restenosis.
- Analysis of advances in nanofabrication for biosensing applications.
- Discussion of emerging trends in implantable medical devices and the Internet of Things.
Main Results:
- Current stent technology faces limitations in preventing in-stent restenosis.
- Advances in nanofabrication enable new sensing methods for potential integration into stents.
- The Internet of Things paradigm is poised to significantly influence future biosensor technology for implantable devices.
Conclusions:
- There is an urgent need for improved clinical interventions to manage atherosclerosis and its complications.
- Integrating biosensors into stents offers a promising future strategy to combat in-stent restenosis.
- The convergence of biosensing, nanofabrication, and the Internet of Things heralds a new era for cardiovascular device technology.
Abstract:
Cardiovascular disease is the greatest cause of death worldwide. Atherosclerosis is the underlying pathology responsible for two thirds of these deaths. It is the age-dependent process of "furring of the arteries." In many scenarios the disease is caused by poor diet, high blood pressure, and genetic risk factors, and is exacerbated by obesity, diabetes, and sedentary lifestyle. Current pharmacological anti-atherosclerotic modalities still fail to control the disease and improvements in clinical interventions are urgently required. Blocked atherosclerotic arteries are routinely treated in hospitals with an expandable metal stent. However, stented vessels are often silently re-blocked by developing "in-stent restenosis," a wound response, in which the vessel's lumen renarrows by excess proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells, termed hyperplasia. Herein, the current stent technology and the future of biosensing devices to overcome in-stent restenosis are reviewed. Second, with advances in nanofabrication, new sensing methods and how researchers are investigating ways to integrate biosensors within stents are highlighted. The future of implantable medical devices in the context of the emerging "Internet of Things" and how this will significantly influence future biosensor technology for future generations are also discussed.
