Who invented coronary stents?

The concept of using stents to treat blocked coronary arteries was pioneered in the late 1970s by Andreas Grüntzig, a German interventional cardiologist. In 1977, he successfully performed the first percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) procedure, in which a balloon catheter is used to open up a narrowed artery. However, the arteries often re-narrowed after angioplasty, and Grüntzig sought a way to keep them open.

In collaboration with his colleagues, Grüntzig developed the first coronary stents, which were made of stainless steel and expandable. In 1984, he implanted the first coronary stent in a patient at the University Hospital in Zurich, Switzerland. The procedure was a success, and the patient was able to return home the next day.

Grüntzig's invention of coronary stents revolutionized the treatment of coronary artery disease and paved the way for the development of more advanced stent technologies, which are now used in millions of patients around the world.

In recognition of his contributions to interventional cardiology, Andreas Grüntzig was awarded the Lasker Award for Clinical Medical Research in 1989 and the Gold Medal of the American Heart Association in 1994. He passed away in 1985.