The new stents under a microscope

by Jess Banham

A new invention that could save lives by reducing the chances of complications after heart surgery has been developed by Kent scientists.

A research team at the Medway campus of the University of Greenwich has created a new kind of stent with a special coating that slowly releases drugs into a patient's blood stream.

Stents, which have been used since the 1980s, are tiny artificial tubes placed in the arteries that supply blood to the heart to keep them open and improve blood flow.

However, the new devices can help improve patient recovery times and reduce complications such as infection, inflammation or blood clots after an operation.

Dr Dennis Douroumis, who led the research team, said: "What we've tried to do is put the drugs on the face of the stent so people can avoid having to take medication later. It's much better to deliver the drugs to the site of the inflammation."

The project has been backed by nearly £750,000 of funding from the European Union and is being developed alongside researcher from two universities in France.

Dr Douroumis, a leading expert in drug delivery systems, added: "There are over 45,000 people on an annual basis who need stents and these numbers are likely to get worse because of our lifestyles.

"Mainly it's our diet - if we eat a lot of food which is rich in cholesterol or fats this could cause a problem. In some cases, people may also have a history in their family of cardiac diseases."

Stents were used during the Duke of Edinburgh's heart surgery at Christmas after it was discovered he had a blocked artery.