BASKET-SMALL 2: advancing DCB beyond in-stent restenosis

Drug-coated balloons (DCB) were first used as a new therapeutic option in the treatment of in-stent restenosis, with proven inhibition of restenosis in clinical studies.1–3 DCB have received a class 1 indication in the 2014 European Society of Cardiology guidelines4 for the treatment of both bare metal stent (BMS) and drug-eluting stent (DES) in-stent restenosis. In PCI, DCB is thought to have several advantages over DES because it inhibits excessive neointimal hyperplasia after balloon angioplasty without leaving a permanent metallic frame (thus there is potential for favourable vascular remodelling), eliminates the risk of stent thrombosis, and reduces the duration of dual antiplatelet therapy. [...]there was no routine core-laboratory analysis of the angiographies at baseline and at follow-up.