You will be awake during the procedure. The doctor will use live x-ray pictures to carefully guide the catheter up into your heart and arteries. Liquid contrast (sometimes called "dye," will be injected into your body to highlight blood flow through the arteries.
Preparing for the stenting procedure
Tell your provider about medicines you take, other surgical procedures you have had, and any medical conditions, such as diabetes, kidney disease, or sleep apnea. You will be asleep for most stent procedures, so plan to have someone else take you home.
The stent pushes against your artery walls, squashing fatty deposits against the artery wall so that blood can flow through it more freely. The procedure usually takes around 30 minutes, but it can take longer depending on how many sections of your artery need treatment.
Typically, you're awake during your stent placement because it's a minimally invasive procedure. Medicine helps you relax, and a local anesthetic numbs the area of insertion, but you're able to hear your doctor and you're aware of what's going on around you.
A stent can cause blood clotting, which may increase the risk of heart attack or stroke. The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute state that about 1 to 2 percent of people who have stented arteries develop a blood clot at the site of the stent. Doctors will usually prescribe one or more drugs to prevent clotting.
What should you expect? The procedure may take place right after the arteriogram, which is used to find the blockage, or it may occur the next day. You may need to stay in the hospital two or three days.
Myth: The angioplasty procedure and stent fixed my heart problems. Fact: You should feel better immediately after your angioplasty because it opened your blocked blood vessel and blood started to flow freely.
Just after the procedure
Once your blood pressure, pulse, and breathing are stable and you are alert, you may be taken to the intensive care unit (ICU) or a regular hospital room. If the sheath was left in the insertion site, it will be removed from the groin or arm at the appropriate time.
After the stent placement procedure, bruising or discolouration is likely to occur where the catheter was inserted, along with soreness in the area where pressure is applied. A patient may feel more tired than usual, in the first few days.
You might feel pressure in the area where the catheter is inserted. You may also feel some mild discomfort when the balloon is inflated and your artery is stretched, but typically you shouldn't feel any sharp pain during the procedure.
After having a planned (non-emergency) coronary angioplasty, you'll usually be able to leave hospital the same day or following day. Arrange for someone to take you home.
Rule No 4: Moderate exercise after stenting procedure: No patient needs bed rest following stent implantation. It is advisable for patients to commence moderate exercise such as walking on the plain ground soon after angioplasty and gradually increase the intensity of exercise.
By clinical guidelines, an artery should be clogged at least 70 percent before a stent should be placed, Resar said. "A 50 percent blockage doesn't need to be stented," he said.
Bedrest may vary from two to six hours depending on your specific condition. If your physician placed a closure device, your bedrest may be of shorter duration. In some cases, the sheath or introducer may be left in the insertion site.
Blumenthal and other doctors typically prescribe cardiac rehab two to three times a week for 12 to 18 weeks beginning about a month after surgery or a cardiac event.
Stents can cause discomfort and pain in the bladder, kidneys, groin, urethra and the genitals. The discomfort or pain may be more noticeable after physical activity and passing urine. Taking regular painkillers, such as paracetamol, should ease the discomfort.
U.K. sources add that it's common to experience this new chest discomfort in the first few days and weeks following a stent procedure. “This is because your artery has suffered some trauma and bruising from the stent being fitted. You can have episodes of pain or discomfort as the stent settles into place.
Carotid stenting is a serious procedure requiring hospital admission. However, it is a commonly performed and relatively safe procedure done by a qualified doctor. Serious complications are rare, and the benefits of the procedure outweigh the risks.
They are made to be permanent — once a stent is placed, it's there to stay. In cases when a stented coronary artery does re-narrow, it usually happens within 1 to 6 months after placement.
Watch for saturated fats in butter, cream, cheese, fatty red meat, and poultry skin. Trans fats can be found in fried and packaged foods — they contribute to high levels of unhealthy cholesterol. Refined and processed grains. Think white bread and white rice.
Driving after a heart attack and a stent
If you had a heart attack and a stent (angioplasty) at the same time, you should not drive for at least two weeks.
Sometimes heart problems return after a stent procedure. If that happens, you usually have symptoms—like chest pain, fatigue, or shortness of breath. If you do have symptoms, a stress test can help your doctor see what's going on. It can show if a blockage has returned or if there's a new blockage.
The main findings demonstrate that chest pain after intervention is common and occurs significantly more often after stent implantation than after PTCA or coronary angiography alone.
Although stenting is technically more difficult than standard PTCA, it can be achieved with a high primary success rate (94% to 97%).