But wait, there's more

The same meeting produced studies that: (1) showed benefit of drug stents after five years (sponsored by Johnson & Johnson); and (2) that drug stents are just as effective in women as in men (Boston Scientific).

So what are you going to do about it?

If you're a heart disease patient, you may want to talk to your cardiologist during your next routine visit about these findings and discuss whether they apply to you.

If you have a stent implanted and have not discussed the bare metal vs. drug-eluting issue before, you may want to raise the topic at your next appointment to see what your cardiologist says about your unique risks, if any.

Most independent cardiologists interviewed for stories about these studies said the same thing: Little is changed. It's vital to match the right patients to the right stent, based on their risk for blood clots, type of blockage, and other factors.

Learn more

Happily, at least one news reporter, doing God's work, attempted to synthesize the findings.

Check out Ben Hirschler's excellent report for Reuters.

The report by New York Times' Barnaby J. Feders report is somewhat helpful too.