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.
You will be asleep for most stent procedures, so plan to have someone else take you home. You may go home the same day or after a few days, depending on the type of stent and your other medical conditions.
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.
While the balloon is inflated, the artery will be completely blocked and you may have some chest pain. However, this is normal and is nothing to worry about. The pain should go away when the balloon is deflated. Ask your cardiologist for pain medication if you find it uncomfortable.
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. Before you leave hospital, you should be given advice on: any medication you need to take.
It generally takes most people a couple of weeks to start returning to their normal activities after angioplasty/stenting. Before you leave hospital, you'll be given detailed instructions for exercise, medications, follow-up appointments, ongoing wound care and resuming normal activities.
Stenting is a minimally invasive procedure, meaning it is not considered major surgery. Stents can be made of metal mesh, fabric, silicone, or combinations of materials. Stents used for coronary arteries are made of metal mesh. Fabric stents, also called stent grafts, are used in larger arteries such as the aorta.
And this question has an answer—bypass surgery—as long as the individual's surgery risk isn't too high. "For three-vessel coronary disease, bypass now has been shown to be superior to stenting, with the possible exception of some cases in which the narrowing in the artery is very short," Cutlip says.
Stenting is ideal when there are just 1 or 2 blockages and they are not major. Patients are discharged quickly and can resume a normal life within a week. A cardiologist will conduct tests to note the extent of blockages and evaluate various parameters to decide whether you are a candidate for bypass or stenting.
The risk of re-narrowing of the artery is higher when bare-metal stents are used. Blood clots. Blood clots can form within stents even after the procedure. These clots can close the artery, causing a heart attack.
One can go back to their normal routine within 2 to 3 days after undergoing the procedure, depending on the doctors' recommendations. However, patients who undergo this procedure must ensure they follow the above-mentioned lifestyle changes to lead a long and healthy life after stent placement.
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.
Background: Stenting of coarctation of the aorta (CoA) generally results in good angiographic results and a decrease in transcoarctation pressure gradient.
Chest pain (angina) that worsens when you engage in physical activities. Shortness of breath that accompanies physical activity. Chest pain that doesn't improve when you've taken medication or made lifestyle changes.
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 taken out of the groin or arm at the right time.
In people with coronary heart disease, the coronary arteries get clogged with fatty deposits called plaques. A stent is a tiny metal tube that helps prop open an artery (blood vessel). Most stents are coated with a medicine that helps keep the artery from getting narrow or blocked again.
If you have other medical conditions such as multiple narrowed coronary arteries, kidney disease that is long-lasting, or diabetes, stents may not be recommended. Your provider may recommend coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG) instead.
While stents offer a minimally invasive way to reopen a blocked artery, bypass surgery also remains a leading treatment for people with complex coronary artery disease (CAD).
Analyzing the results in about 400 patients, he found that stenting costs about $13,000 -- roughly $2,000 to $3,000 more than regular angioplasty.
Very severe heart disease, or stage 4, has three or more vessels with over 50 percent blockage.
One can expect to reach the pre-disease exercise status within one month of a stenting procedure. Heavy exercise such as lifting weights or walking up steep slopes should be avoided for about 4-6 weeks.
It's a card that you carry in your wallet that tells the location of the stent in your body, the date of your procedure when you received the stent and your doctor's name and contact information.
The doctor may have placed a small tube, called a stent, in the artery. Your groin or wrist may have a bruise and feel sore for a few days after the procedure. You can do light activities around the house. But don't do anything strenuous until your doctor says it is okay.
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.