Sirolimus-Eluting Balloon With Provisional Stenting Versus Systematic Drug-Eluting Stent Implantation to Treat De Novo Coronary Lesions: A Randomized, Open-Label, Noninferiority Trial

C Christian Spaulding (Cardiovascular Department, Hôpital Européen Georges-Pompidou, Université Paris-Cité, France (E.P., C.S., E.M.).) F Florian Krackhardt (Berlin Institute of Health at Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, BIH Center for Regenerative Therapies (BCRT), Charité Campus Virchow-Klinikum, Germany (F.K).) K Kris Bogaerts (Department of Public Health and Primary Care, I-BioStat, KU Leuven, Leuven and UHasselt, I-BioStat, Hasselt, Belgium (K.B.).) E Eltigani Abdelaal (Manchester Heart Institute, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, UK (E.A.).) F Fernando Alfonso (Department of Cardiology, Hospital Universitario de La Princesa, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Hospital Universitario de La Princesa, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red en Enfermedades Cardiovasculares (CIBER-CV), Madrid) C Carlo Briguori (Mediterranea Cardiocentro, Naples, Italy (C.B.).) L Leonhard Bruch (BG Klinikum Unfallkrankenhaus Department of Internal Medicine/Cardiology, Berlin, Germany (L.B.).) N Nicholas Cruden (Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, Edinburgh) A Alexander W. Den Hartog (Department of Cardiology, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Netherlands (A.W.D.H.).) P Philippe Garot (Institut Cardiovasculaire Paris Sud Hôpital Jacques Cartier Ramsay-Santé, Massy, France (P.G.).) M Mathieu Godin (Clinique Saint Hillaire, Rouen, France (M.G.).) D David Hildick-Smith (Sussex Cardiac Centre, University Hospitals Sussex, Brighton, United Kingdom) T Thomas Johnson A Andrew Ladwiniec (University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, United Kingdom) A Axel Linke (University Hospital, Dresden, Germany) C Clint Anthony Maart (Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Norwich Medical School, University of East Anglia, UK (C.A.M, S.E.).) K Kambis Mashayekhi (Clinic of Internal Medicine and Cardiology, Heart Center Lahr, Lahr, Germany) P Pascal Meier L Ludovic Meunier (Cardiology Department, Centre Hospitalier La Rochelle, France (L.M.).) K Kenneth Morgan (Northern General Hospital, Sheffield, UK (K.P.M.).) P Peter O’Kane (Department of Cardiology, Royal Bournemouth Hospital, Bournemouth, United Kingdom) E Etienne Puymirat (Université Paris-Cité, Paris) T Tuomas T. Rissanen (Heart Center, North Karelia Central Hospital, Siunsote, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio (T.T.R.).) M Manel Sabaté (Cardiology Department, Cardiovascular Institute, Hospital Clinic, Institut d’Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer, University of Barcelona, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red Enfermedades Cardiovaculares (CIBER-CV), Barcelona) T Thomas Schmitz G Gabor G. Toth J Jasper Trevelyan (Worcestershire Acute Hospital NHS Trust, UK (J.T.).) P Piotr Wanczura (Department of Cardiology, Collegium Medicum, University of Rzeszow, Poland (P.W.).) M Marcus Wiemer (Johannes Wesling Universitätsklinik, Minden, Germany (M.W.).) J Joanna J. Wykrzykowska (From the Department of Cardiology, St. Antonius Hospital, Nieuwegein (D.J.G., W.L.B., J.P., B.J.W.M.R., L.T., M.J.S., J.B., V.J.N., D.C.O., J.M.B.), the Department of Cardiology, Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam (H.M.A., J.G.P.T., R.D.), the Department of Cardiology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht (H.M.A., M. Voskuil), the Department of Cardiology, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen (M.J.P.R., V.J.N., N.R.), the Department of Cardiology, Maastricht University Medical Center (L.V., A.J.J.I., P.A.V., A.W.J.H.), and Cardiovascular Research Institute Maastricht (L.V., P.A.V., A.W.J.H., J.M.B.), Maastricht, the Department of Cardiology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden (F.K., J.M.M.-C.), the Department of Cardiology, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen (K.H.B., J.J.W.), the Department of Cardiology, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam (N.M.V.M.), the Department of Cardiology, Haga Hospital, the Hague (C.E.S.), the Department of Cardiology, Amphia Hospital, Breda (A.J.J.I...) P Philip Urban (Cardiovascular Department, Hôpital de la Tour, Geneva, Switzerland (P.U.).) S Simon Eccleshall (Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Norwich Medical School, University of East Anglia, UK (C.A.M, S.E.).) M Mathias Frick C Clemens Steinwender L Leoš Pleva M Martin Poloczek G Guillaume Cayla (Cardiology Department, Nimes University Hospital, Montpellier University, ACTION Study Group, Nimes, France) N Nicolas Delarche P Pierre Poustis M Martin Andrassy R Ralf Birkemeyer F Fabian Brunner F Frank Edelmann M Marcel Halbach C Christoph Langer F Faridun Daniel Rahimi Nedjat J Joachim Schofer B Bastian Wein D Dario Bongiovanni M Maurizio d’Amico F Fabrizio Ugo M Michael Dickinson M Madera Cambero K Kamil Skoczynski F Fam Jiang Ming V Victor A. Jimenez Diaz D Diego Arroyo J Jonas Häner J Juan Fernando Iglesias G Gregor Leibundgut J Johannes Rigger B Barbara Stähli F Freidoon Keshavarzi N Nick Cruden N Nick Curzen (University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust, Southampton, United Kingdom) K Karim Ratib (Royal Stoke University Hospital, Stoke-on-Trent, United Kingdom) N Neil Ruparelia A Andrew Peter Vanezis S Stuart Watkins (NHS Golden Jubilee, Glasgow, United Kingdom) J Juan Iglesias M Muhammad Bin Idu Jion M Maciej Lesiak G Gioel Gabrio Secco T Thierry Royer S Stéphane Carlier S Stephane Cook M Michal Hawranek J Jean-Louis Mas J Joanna Szachniewicz B Bernhard Meier F Fina Mauri S Sonia Petronio

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Implantation of drug eluting stents (DESs) is currently the default approach for percutaneous coronary interventions, but long-term adverse events still exist. An approach with minimal stenting deserves to be assessed in a randomized trial. We studied a novel sirolimus-eluting balloon (SEB) that elutes sirolimus over a 90-day period using a biodegradable polymer microreservoir technology. METHODS: In a multicenter, open-label, randomized trial, we compared an SEB-based strategy with provisional DES with one of systematic DES for de novo lesions in coronary arteries between 2 and 5 mm in diameter. Subjects were randomized 1:1 before percutaneous coronary intervention. The primary end point was target vessel failure, a composite of cardiac death, target vessel–related myocardial infarction, and clinically driven target vessel revascularization. It was tested for noninferiority at 1 year with the use of an absolute margin equal to 50% of the combined event rate at a significance level of 0.025. The primary analysis population included all randomized subjects with completed or attempted percutaneous revascularization, analyzed according to the intention-to-treat principle. A sensitivity analysis was performed on the per-protocol population. RESULTS: Between August 27, 2021, and July 29, 2024, 3323 participants were randomized and treated in 62 sites. Among 1661 participants in the SEB strategy group, bailout stenting was performed in 343 (20.7%). Target vessel failure occurred over 365 days in 88 (5.3%) and 73 (4.4%) participants in the SEB and the systematic DES strategy groups, respectively (risk difference, 0.91% [95% CI –0.55% to 2.38%]; 1-sided P =0.02 for noninferiority with a 2.44% noninferiority margin). Clinically driven target vessel revascularization occurred more frequently in the SEB strategy group (3.3% versus 2.1%; risk difference, 1.22% [95% CI, 0.11%–2.33%). Safety events, including lesion thrombosis, were low and similar in both groups. Although the results of the per-protocol population (3194 participants, 96%) did not confirm noninferiority (upper boundary of the 95% CI, 2.63; P =0.04), they were similar to the intention-to-treat results in both magnitude and direction. CONCLUSIONS: At 1 year, in the primary intention-to-treat analysis population, a strategy of percutaneous coronary intervention with SEB and provisional DES was noninferior to the systematic use of DES for the primary end point of target vessel failure. The per-protocol population sensitivity analysis did not confirm noninferiority. Clinically driven target vessel revascularization occurred more frequently in the SEB strategy group. At 5 years, target vessel failure will be tested again for noninferiority and for superiority if noninferiority is achieved. REGISTRATION: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov ; Unique identifier: NCT04859985.

Article Details

Journal Circulation
Volume / Issue Vol. 154, Issue 3
Published July 21, 2026
Pages 185-197
ISSN 0009-7322
Publisher Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

Journal Info

Circulation

Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

ISSN: 0009-7322 Health Sciences

Authors (82)

C

Christian Spaulding

Cardiovascular Department, Hôpital Européen Georges-Pompidou, Université Paris-Cité, France (E.P., C.S., E.M.).

F

Florian Krackhardt

Berlin Institute of Health at Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, BIH Center for Regenerative Therapies (BCRT), Charité Campus Virchow-Klinikum, Germany (F.K).

K

Kris Bogaerts

Department of Public Health and Primary Care, I-BioStat, KU Leuven, Leuven and UHasselt, I-BioStat, Hasselt, Belgium (K.B.).

E

Eltigani Abdelaal

Manchester Heart Institute, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, UK (E.A.).

F

Fernando Alfonso

Department of Cardiology, Hospital Universitario de La Princesa, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Hospital Universitario de La Princesa, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red en Enfermedades Cardiovasculares (CIBER-CV), Madrid

C

Carlo Briguori

Mediterranea Cardiocentro, Naples, Italy (C.B.).

L

Leonhard Bruch

BG Klinikum Unfallkrankenhaus Department of Internal Medicine/Cardiology, Berlin, Germany (L.B.).

N

Nicholas Cruden

Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, Edinburgh

A

Alexander W. Den Hartog

Department of Cardiology, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Netherlands (A.W.D.H.).

P

Philippe Garot

Institut Cardiovasculaire Paris Sud Hôpital Jacques Cartier Ramsay-Santé, Massy, France (P.G.).

M

Mathieu Godin

Clinique Saint Hillaire, Rouen, France (M.G.).

D

David Hildick-Smith

Sussex Cardiac Centre, University Hospitals Sussex, Brighton, United Kingdom

T

Thomas Johnson

A

Andrew Ladwiniec

University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, United Kingdom

A

Axel Linke

University Hospital, Dresden, Germany

C

Clint Anthony Maart

Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Norwich Medical School, University of East Anglia, UK (C.A.M, S.E.).

K

Kambis Mashayekhi

Clinic of Internal Medicine and Cardiology, Heart Center Lahr, Lahr, Germany

P

Pascal Meier

L

Ludovic Meunier

Cardiology Department, Centre Hospitalier La Rochelle, France (L.M.).

K

Kenneth Morgan

Northern General Hospital, Sheffield, UK (K.P.M.).

P

Peter O’Kane

Department of Cardiology, Royal Bournemouth Hospital, Bournemouth, United Kingdom

E

Etienne Puymirat

Université Paris-Cité, Paris

T

Tuomas T. Rissanen

Heart Center, North Karelia Central Hospital, Siunsote, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio (T.T.R.).

M

Manel Sabaté

Cardiology Department, Cardiovascular Institute, Hospital Clinic, Institut d’Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer, University of Barcelona, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red Enfermedades Cardiovaculares (CIBER-CV), Barcelona

T

Thomas Schmitz

G

Gabor G. Toth

J

Jasper Trevelyan

Worcestershire Acute Hospital NHS Trust, UK (J.T.).

P

Piotr Wanczura

Department of Cardiology, Collegium Medicum, University of Rzeszow, Poland (P.W.).

M

Marcus Wiemer

Johannes Wesling Universitätsklinik, Minden, Germany (M.W.).

J

Joanna J. Wykrzykowska

From the Department of Cardiology, St. Antonius Hospital, Nieuwegein (D.J.G., W.L.B., J.P., B.J.W.M.R., L.T., M.J.S., J.B., V.J.N., D.C.O., J.M.B.), the Department of Cardiology, Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam (H.M.A., J.G.P.T., R.D.), the Department of Cardiology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht (H.M.A., M. Voskuil), the Department of Cardiology, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen (M.J.P.R., V.J.N., N.R.), the Department of Cardiology, Maastricht University Medical Center (L.V., A.J.J.I., P.A.V., A.W.J.H.), and Cardiovascular Research Institute Maastricht (L.V., P.A.V., A.W.J.H., J.M.B.), Maastricht, the Department of Cardiology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden (F.K., J.M.M.-C.), the Department of Cardiology, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen (K.H.B., J.J.W.), the Department of Cardiology, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam (N.M.V.M.), the Department of Cardiology, Haga Hospital, the Hague (C.E.S.), the Department of Cardiology, Amphia Hospital, Breda (A.J.J.I...

P

Philip Urban

Cardiovascular Department, Hôpital de la Tour, Geneva, Switzerland (P.U.).

S

Simon Eccleshall

Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Norwich Medical School, University of East Anglia, UK (C.A.M, S.E.).

M

Mathias Frick

C

Clemens Steinwender

L

Leoš Pleva

M

Martin Poloczek

G

Guillaume Cayla

Cardiology Department, Nimes University Hospital, Montpellier University, ACTION Study Group, Nimes, France

N

Nicolas Delarche

P

Pierre Poustis

M

Martin Andrassy

R

Ralf Birkemeyer

F

Fabian Brunner

F

Frank Edelmann

M

Marcel Halbach

C

Christoph Langer

F

Faridun Daniel Rahimi Nedjat

J

Joachim Schofer

B

Bastian Wein

D

Dario Bongiovanni

M

Maurizio d’Amico

F

Fabrizio Ugo

M

Michael Dickinson

M

Madera Cambero

K

Kamil Skoczynski

F

Fam Jiang Ming

V

Victor A. Jimenez Diaz

D

Diego Arroyo

J

Jonas Häner

J

Juan Fernando Iglesias

G

Gregor Leibundgut

J

Johannes Rigger

B

Barbara Stähli

F

Freidoon Keshavarzi

N

Nick Cruden

N

Nick Curzen

University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust, Southampton, United Kingdom

K

Karim Ratib

Royal Stoke University Hospital, Stoke-on-Trent, United Kingdom

N

Neil Ruparelia

A

Andrew Peter Vanezis

S

Stuart Watkins

NHS Golden Jubilee, Glasgow, United Kingdom

J

Juan Iglesias

M

Muhammad Bin Idu Jion

M

Maciej Lesiak

G

Gioel Gabrio Secco

T

Thierry Royer

S

Stéphane Carlier

S

Stephane Cook

M

Michal Hawranek

J

Jean-Louis Mas

J

Joanna Szachniewicz

B

Bernhard Meier

F

Fina Mauri

S

Sonia Petronio