Covered Stent Treats Acute Coronary Artery Perforation

An innovative single layer covered stent system designed with high flexibility and deliverability can serve as a bailout stent for acute coronary artery perforations.

The PK Papyrus coronary stent is a sixth generation bare metal stent made of a cobalt-chromium alloy, which allows for thinner struts, while still maintaining optimal radial strength and radiopacity. The thin struts, only 60 µm in diameter, also result in exceptional flexibility and deliverability of the stent, even in challenging vessels. The polyurethane membrane covering the stent is only 90 µm thin, thanks to an electrospinning process that results in 24% reduction in diameter over a sandwich design.


The diameter reduction means that the PK Papyrus fits in a 1.67 mm (5F) catheter, eliminating the need to switch access catheters during emergencies. In addition, the wide size range available—2.5–5.0 mm in diameter, 15–26 mm in length—enables a broad range of vessels to be treated confidently and efficiently. The PK Papyrus coronary stent is a product of BIOTRONIK (Buelach, Switzerland), and is based on the company’s Orsiro/PRO-Kinetic Energy stent platform. It has received the European community CE marking of approval.

“PK Papyrus is a testament to the engineering excellence at BIOTRONIK,” said Alexander Uhl, vice president of marketing at Vascular Intervention, BIOTRONIK. “The application of this electrospinning technology to the already highly deliverable BIOTRONIK Orsiro/PRO-Kinetic Energy stent platform has allowed us to introduce a novel product to the market that will enable physicians to treat patients in emergency situations quickly and safely.”

“In acute situations when there is a vessel perforation, I need a stent that is highly effective and has optimum deliverability,” said Prof. Georg Nickenig, MD, of University Hospital Bonn (Germany). “With PK Papyrus, I am confident that, if such a situation arises, I have a stent that is straight-forward to introduce into the artery with a flexibility that means simplified placement.”

Severe acute perforation is a rare but catastrophic event that has shown up to 20% mortality. One potential treatment is to exclude the defect by deploying a covered stent over the perforation, but many current covered stent designs necessitate large guide catheters, requiring physicians to switch guide catheters mid-way and delaying treatments.

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