Novel biodegradable stents in the treatment of XXXX after lung transplantation.

@entity1 @entity548 @entity944 @entity358 @entity16265 @entity850
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the safety and effectiveness of novel biodegradable (BD) stents to treat @entity850 in @entity1 after lung transplantation. METHODS: Twenty BD stents were implanted endoscopically in six @entity1 (median age 41.5 years (range 35-57 years)) with post-transplant bronchial anastomotic stenoses, between 2006 and 2010. All stents were custom-made from bio-absorbable @entity16265 (PDS). The median stent diameter was 12 mm (8-17 mm) and median length was 20mm (12-30 mm). All @entity1 were evaluated clinically, by bronchoscopy and high-definition computed tomography (CT). RESULTS: The @entity850 was initially relieved in all cases. There was no @entity548 , perforation or displacement after BD stent implantation. Four @entity1 needed multiple stenting for anastomotic @entity850 . Median time to any re-stenting was 5 months (2-15 months). There was one @entity944 , 1 year after the last BD stent implantation, from a @entity358 . All five survivors are in good clinical condition up to 4 years' follow-up (median 40 months, range 7-48 months) since first stenting and intervention-free up to 44 months (median 24 months, range 7-44 months). CONCLUSIONS: This small pilot study shows that BD stents are a safe, effective and reliable alternative to classical metallic stents in @entity1 with @entity850 after lung transplantation, and may avoid the need for permanent stenting.
