A coronary stent is a small wire mesh tube which is inserted into a blocked or narrow artery, helping to keep it open and improve the flow of blood to the heart. This life-saving procedure is used to reduce the risk of heart attacks.
The insertion of the stent is a minimally invasive surgery performed under anaesthesia. The three main types of cardiac stents in India are bare-metal stents, biodegradable polymer stents, and drug-eluting stents.
Though imported cardiac stents made by companies like Abbott Vascular, Medtronic, Johnson & Johnson, Umbra Medical Products, B Braun Medical, and Boston Scientific are widely used, domestic cardiac stent manufacturers in India such as Meril, Sahajanand Medical Technologies (SMT), Translumina Therapeutics, control about 60% share of the market.
A study compared Supraflex, a stent made by Surat-based stent manufacturer, Sahajanand Medical Technologies, with the US company, Abbott brand called Xience.
Supraflex is a sirolimus-eluting stent that has a biodegradable polymer coating and ultra-thin struts, while Xience is an everolimus-eluting stent with a durable polymer coating. The study led by an Indian cardiologist, Upendra Kaul examined patients from 7 countries and concluded that the Indian-made brand was not inferior to the foreign brand.
