After coronary stenting, inflammatory mechanisms play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of neointimal proliferation and in-stent restenosis. Drug-eluting stents (DESs) have been shown to decrease in-stent restenosis in different studies. We compared plasma C-reactive protein (CRP) levels after DES implantation with levels after bare metal stent (BMS) implantation. We performed percutaneous coronary intervention with a single stent in 67 patients (54 men; 59 +/- 9 years of age; n = 21 in the BMS group, n = 46 in the DES group) who had stable angina. Plasma CRP levels were determined before intervention and at 48 hours, 72 hours, and 2 weeks after coronary stenting. There was no difference in clinical and angiographic baseline characteristics except that the DES group had more patients with diabetes (34.8% vs 9.5%, p = 0.04), smaller reference vessels (2.95 +/- 0.53 vs 3.29 +/- 0.53 mm, p = 0.02), and smaller stent diameters (3.0 +/- 0.4 mm vs 3.4 +/- 0.5 mm, p <0.01). Plasma CRP levels at 48 hours (13.4 +/- 14.7 vs 5.9 +/- 4.9 mg/L, p <0.01) and 72 hours (16.7 +/- 19.8 vs 5.4 +/- 3.9 mg/L, p <0.01) after stent implantation were significantly higher in the BMS than in the DES group. In conclusion, DESs showed significantly lower plasma CRP levels after coronary stenting compared with BMSs. This may reflect the potent effects of DESs on acute inflammatory reactions induced by coronary intervention.