Current status of research and application in vascular stents

Cardiovascular diseases have been the leading cause of death in modern society. Using vascular stents to treat these coronary and peripheral artery diseases has been one of the most effective and rapidly adopted medical interventions. During the twenty-five years’ development of vascular stents, revolutionary cardiovascular stents like drug eluting stents and endothelial progenitor cells capture stents have emerged. In this review, the evolution of vascular stents is summarized, aiming to provide a glimpse into the future of vascular stents. Advanced designs, focusing on the investigations of new substrates, new platforms, new drugs and new biomolecules are currently under evaluation with promising clinical studies. The concept of “time sequence functional stent” has been raised in this paper. It presents anti-proliferative properties in the first phase after implantation and subsequently support endothelialization. It also shows long-term inertness without release of toxic ions or toxic degradation products. The success of this concept is briefly presented with a clinical study in this model stents.