Safety and efficacy of 6‐month versus 12‐month dual antiplatelet therapy in patients after implantation of multiple biodegradable polymer‐coated sirolimus‐eluting coronary stents: Insight from the I‐LOVE‐IT 2 trial

OBJECTIVE: This study sought to compare the clinical outcomes of 6-month versus 12-month dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) in patients receiving multiple biodegradable polymer-coated sirolimus-eluting stents (BP-SES) implants. BACKGROUND: The clinical outcomes for patients who undergo multiple BP-SES implantation with different DAPT durations are uncertain. METHODS: In the I-LOVE-IT 2 trial, 907 patients treated with multiple BP-SES (total stent number ≥2) were assigned to receive 6-month (n = 440) or 12-month (n = 467) DAPT. The primary endpoint was 12-month target lesion failure (TLF), which is a composite of cardiac death, target vessel myocardial infarction (MI) or clinically indicated target lesion revascularization. The major secondary endpoints were 12-month net adverse clinical events, a composite of all causes of death, MI, stroke, any revascularization and bleeding. RESULTS: The number of stents per patient between the 6-month and 12-month DAPT group was similar (2.4 ± 0.7 vs. 2.4 ± 0.7, P = 0.47). The incidence of 12-month TLF was comparable in the 6-month and 12-month DAPT groups (9.3% vs.7.5%, Log-rank P = 0.33). However, landmark analysis showed that 12-month DAPT, compared to 6-month DAPT, was associated with a significantly lower risk of TLF (4.8% vs. 2.4%, Log-rank P = 0.049) at a cost of a slightly increased risk of all bleeding events (0.5% vs. 1.7%, Log-rank P = 0.07) between 6 and 12 months. CONCLUSIONS: In patients treated with multiple BP-SES, 6- and 12-month DAPT had similar impacts on 12-month clinical outcomes. Additionally, 12-month DAPT might reduce TLF between 6 and 12 months at the cost of a slightly increased risk of all bleeding events.