FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 20, 2005
Contact: Sharon Boston sboston@umm.edu
Ellen Beth Levitt eblevitt@umm.edu 410-328-8919

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND DOCTORS USE NEW SELF-EXPANDING STENT TO OPEN CLOGGED ARTERIES IN THE BRAIN

Maryland Forklift Operator is First Patient in the Mid-Atlantic Region to Receive Device

The Wingspan Stent opens clogged arteries in the brain to allow blood to flow through.

Doctors at the University of Maryland Medical Center are among the first in the nation to use a new, potentially life-saving stent to open clogged arteries in the brain. If left untreated, such blockages can lead to a stroke. The new device, called the Wingspan Stent System, is specifically designed to treat blockages in the brain caused by intracranial atherosclerotic disease, a condition that causes strokes in approximately 60,000 Americans each year. Physicians use a minimally invasive technique to deploy the stent inside the brain.

"Stents have been used for many years to clear blockages in the arteries of the heart and neck. But the arteries in the brain present a very different challenge because they are more fragile and have many more curves, making it harder to get the stent to the site of the blockage," explains Abraham Obuchowski, M.D., the interventional neuroradiologist who performed the procedure at the University of Maryland Medical Center.

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Wingspan Stent Patient Success Story

"A stent is a very small, metal scaffold that pushes the arterial plaque to the side and provides a framework to keep the vessel open, allowing the blood to move through. The new device, which is specially designed for use in the brain, provides an exciting option for patients who have plaque in those blood vessels but who are not getting enough benefit with traditional drug treatment," adds Dr. Obuchowski, who is also an assistant professor of diagnostic radiology and nuclear medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

John Dietz of Pasadena, Maryland, is the first patient in the mid-Atlantic region to receive Boston Scientific’s new Wingspan Stent, which recently received Food and Drug Administration approval for use through a humanitarian device exemption. The 46-year-old forklift operator had a stroke in October 2005, following a smaller stroke (transient ischemic attack) in July. Doctors then discovered that one of the arteries in Mr. Dietz’s brain was nearly three-quarters blocked, with just over half of a millimeter of space for the blood to move through.

"Patients with a blockage of more than 50 percent are at a much greater risk for a larger, more-disabling and perhaps even fatal stroke," says Dr. Obuchowksi. "Despite taking medication, thousands of patients like Mr. Dietz still have stroke-like symptoms. These patients know that at any time they could have a life-changing stroke."

A stroke occurs when brain tissue is deprived of blood, leading to potential vision trouble, speech problems, disability and even death. Traditional medical management for intracranial atherosclerotic disease involves using blood thinning drugs such as Coumadin and aspirin to prevent clots.

To help patients who are not getting enough benefit from medication, doctors have tried using stents designed for the heart, but these devices were stiff and difficult to maneuver in the brain. They are also made of steel, which can injure the brain’s more fragile blood vessels. The Wingspan Stent is made of nitinol, an alloy of nickel and titanium, which puts less pressure on the blood vessel when it expands.

For the procedure, interventional neuroradiologists insert a catheter into an artery in the upper leg. Using digital X-rays for image guidance, the physicians navigate the catheter through the blood vessels to the site of the blockage in the brain. They then slowly inflate an angioplasty balloon to push away the plaque and deploy the stent to hold the vessel open.

While the Wingspan Stent is new, the interventional neuroradiologists at the University of Maryland Medical Center have vast experience going through the bloodstream to make non-surgical, minimally invasive repairs in the brain for conditions such as aneurysms. This technology is a natural extension of their expertise.

“We expect that the new Wingspan device will keep the blood vessels open and significantly decrease a patient’s risk of stroke,” says Dr. Obuchowski. “The patient may still have stroke risk factors such as high blood pressure or high cholesterol, but the immediate risk will be eliminated. This can be a life-saving option for those patients with intracranial atherosclerotic disease who are still having stroke symptoms despite the best medical therapy.”

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