In interventional cardiology, as in academia, every major advance represents both an ending and a beginning at the same time. Twenty-five years ago, the first angioplasty procedures heralded the hope of a significantly better way to treat coronary artery disease, one less invasive and delivering clinical results that rival bypass surgery. And who, today, would argue that angioplasty hasn't delivered on its early promise?
Yet, angioplasty had its limitations, particularly in the early days, and more to the point, it created new problems such...