Pharmacokinetic Study of Paclitaxel Concentration after Drug-Eluting Balloon Angioplasty in the Iliac Artery of Healthy and Atherosclerotic Rabbit Models

Paclitaxel concentration in an atherosclerotic lesion model immediately after DEB angioplasty is nearly fourfold higher than in a healthy artery. Paclitaxel remains in the bloodstream longer when a universal state of fat arterial infiltration is achieved. These findings could have clinical implications, as studies testing commercial drug-eluting devices on healthy animals may be underestimating paclitaxel arterial uptake.