Mark & Associates, P.C. Attorneys At Law

Boston Scientific Taxus Express Drug-eluting Stent Linked to Blood Clots

About the Boston Scientific Taxus Stent

Did you or a loved one developed clotting / thrombosis after having a Boston Scientific Taxus Stent implanted?  If so, you have rights and are urged to contact Mark & Associates, P.C. as soon as possible to protect your legal rights.  The Taxus Stent is a drug coated coronary heart stent.  It is implanted in angioplasty surgery to open up blockages that can lead to heart attack.  Stents such as the Taxus stent are meant to hold the artery open and to prevent reclosure of the artery, or “restenosis.”  The Boston Scientific Taxus Express Stent, approved by the FDA in March 2004, emits the drug Paclitaxel, which inhibits scar tissue growth and prevents blockages.  The Taxus uses Translute™, which is a polymer that controls the release of paclitaxel.  

Risk of Thrombosis

A new study reveals that these new drug coated stents have a four to five-fold higher risk of blood clotting than the older, bare metal (non-drug-eluting) stents. Blood clots put stent patients at a higher risk of cardiac arrest. One theory for the higher clotting risk is that the drugs emitted by these newer stents prevent the artery from healing by forming a protective coating to protect against clot formation. The study, by a doctor at the Cleveland Clinic, was a meta-analysis of 14 studies including 6,675 stent patients. The studies looked at patients with the cypher stent (by Johnson & Johnson, emits the drug sirolimus) and with the taxus express stent (by Boston Scientific, emits the drug paclitaxel). The study found a 4-5 fold increased risk for late thrombosis (blood clotting) in patients with drug-eluting stents compared to those with bare-metal stents.  As a result of the findings, it was recommended that patients with a Taxus stent be given anticoagulants such as Plavix or aspirin for 6 months after the angioplasty, and patients with the Cyhper stent for 2-3 months.  However, in late thrombosis, blood clots may appear a year or more after placement of the drug coated stent.  

Representing Taxus Stent Patients Nationwide

• If you or a loved one developed blood clots / thrombosis following the implantation of a Boston Scientific Taxus Stent, you have rights.  Drug coated stents were developed and put into widespread use despite the lack of long studies involving large numbers of patients.  This lack of research has put millions of patients at risk.
• To receive a FREE Taxus Stent consultation, contact our experienced defective medical device attorneys today.
• Mark & Associates, P.C. takes all stent cases on contingency.  There NO legal fees unless we win compensation in your Taxus Stent case.
• Call 1-866-50-RIGHTS (1-866-507-4448) or fill out our online Taxus Stent case review form today.

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