Comparison of biolimus eluted from an erodible stent coating with bare metal stents in acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction (COMFORTABLE AMI trial): rationale and design

Compared with bare metal stents (BMS), early generation drug-eluting stents (DES) reduce the risk of revascularisation in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) at the expense of an increased risk of very late stent thrombosis (ST). Durable polymer coatings for controlled drug release have been identified as a potential trigger for these late adverse events and this has led to the development of newer generation DES with durable and biodegradable polymer surface coatings with improved biocompatibility. In a recent all-comers trial, biolimus-eluting stents with a biodegradable polymer surface coating were found to reduce the risk of very late ST by 80% compared with sirolimus-eluting stents with durable polymer, which also translated into a lower risk of cardiac death and myocardial infarction (MI) beyond one year.

Pelvic morphology differs in rotation and obliquity between developmental dysplasia of the hip and retroversion

Developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) and acetabular retroversion represent distinct acetabular pathomorphologies. Both are associated with alterations in pelvic morphology. In cases where direct radiographic assessment of the acetabulum is difficult or impossible or in mixed cases of DDH and retroversion, additional indirect pelvimetric parameters would help identify the major underlying structural abnormality.