[Future perspectives in coronary stenting]

Coronary stenting has made a significant difference in percutaneous coronary revascularization techniques, since it provides an effective treatment for procedural complications and prevents to some degree the incidence of restenosis. Presently, many different stents are available on the market, therefore most interventional cardiologist needs are well covered. Nevertheless, there are still some vessels/lesions unsuitable for coronary stenting, such as very distal lesions or lesions in small vessels. On the other hand, although restenosis is less frequent after stenting, its incidence is still significant posteriorly, representing a major health and economical problem. In the near future, new developments in stent technology such as polymeric coating, local drug delivery systems or intraarterial radiation may contribute to a further decrease in the incidence of restenosis. With better short- and long-term results indications for percutaneous coronary revascularization might be significantly expanded in the next few years.