A review on design characteristics and fabrication methods of metallic cardiovascular stents

The present review gives an overview of the composition and fabrication technologies of metallic cardiovascular stents and their effects on the stent characteristics and function. The fabrication process has a significant effect on the geometry and the design characteristics of the stent and imparts different microstructures, corrosion behavior, and mechanical properties to the fabricated stent. Therefore, the operational and functional efficiency of stents in the body is dependent on the manufacturing process. Several stents have been developed and used for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases since their introduction as atherosclerosis remedy, including bare-metal stents (BMS), drug-eluting stents (DES), and bio-resorbable stents (BRS). Accordingly, various methods have been evaluated to fabricate stents in accordance with desired performance. Although several reviews have been published on the function and clinical success of various stent materials, there is a lack of information about the impact of various fabrication methods of metallic stents on their final features and functionality. The current work investigates a variety of conventional and modern methods that are used for the fabrication of metallic cardiovascular stents.