European Heart Journal: Stents or Bypass Surgery?

Many patients with heart failure and coronary artery disease can benefit from coronary artery stents and bypass surgery. However, it is not always clear which will benefit an individual patient the most. No clinical trials have compared these treatments in people with heart failure.

This study was an international collaboration between cardiologists in the UK and USA. Using advanced statistical techniques, we used data from other studies to simulate a clinical trial between stents and bypass surgery. The publication of these results will help cardiologists to make better decisions and better inform their patients about their options for undergoing treatment of heart disease. It highlights the important of a holistic approach to care, showing that the patients who had the very best results were those in whom medications were correctly started and maintained, alongside other treatments.

Dr Ryan had previously presented the study as a late breaking clinical trial at the European Society of Cardiology meeting in August 2024, in a major late breaking science session to an audience of 500 cardiologists.