PURPOSE: To determine the effects of the incidental exposure of stents to pulsed 308 nanometer ultraviolet excimer laser energy. METHODS: Five types of 316 L stainless-steel coronary stents were subjected to two types of study. First, for endurance testing, sixty stents were deployed in 3.0Eth 4.0 mm polymer tubes in three geometries. Up to 1,000 laser pulses were delivered while advancing a 2.0 mm eccentric catheter through the lumen of the stent. These stents were next subjected to 400 million simulated heartbeats and then analyzed for metal etching and fatigue. Second, six additional stents were irradiated with 1,000 pulses underwater and then analyzed for particulates, anions and cations liberated from the stent. RESULTS: Photomicroscopy revealed surface etching on a number of stents. Two stent models exhibited multiple strut fractures at the strut joints in both test samples and controls. In no case was a break observed at the site of laser-stent interaction. Breakage frequency was not significantly different between lazed stents and controls. Lazed stents produced a mean of 14 micrograms of sodium and 4 micrograms of iron more than controls. No excess particulates were detected. CONCLUSION: Under model conditions typical of clinical use, excimer laser treatment does not alter stainless-steel stent endurance or liberate clinically significant material from the stent.