What is a cardiac stent?

Your coronary arteries supply oxygen-rich blood to your heart muscle. Over time, plaque forms in the coronary arteries and restricts blood flow through them. This is called coronary heart disease (CHD). It can damage your heart muscle and increase your risk of heart attack.

The cardiac stent is used to treat narrowed or blocked coronary arteries. It can also be used to improve blood flow immediately after a heart attack. Cardiac stents are expandable coils made of metal mesh.

Your doctor may include one during a coronary angioplasty, a minimally invasive, non-surgical procedure. This device is designed to support the walls of your arteries, keep your arteries open, and improve blood flow to your heart.

According to the Cleveland Clinic, angioplasty with stent placement is generally recommended for patients with one or two blocked arteries. If you have more than two blocked arteries, bypass surgery is a good option for you.

Why do I need a cardiac stent?

Stents are often necessary when plaque blocks blood vessels. Plaque is made of cholesterol and other materials that adhere to the walls of a glass.

You may need a stent during an emergency procedure. The emergency procedure is more common if the coronary artery, called the coronary artery, is blocked. Your doctor will first place the catheter in the blocked coronary artery. This allows balloon angioplasty to open the barrier. They place a stent in the artery to keep the vessel open.

Stents can also help prevent aneurysms in your brain, aorta, or other blood vessels from rupturing.

In addition to blood vessels, stents can open in any of the following ways:

Bile ducts, these are the ducts that carry bile to and from the digestive organs.

Trachea, these are the small airways in the lungs for air.

Tubes that carry urine from the kidneys to the bladder.

These tubes are blocked or damaged in the same way as blood vessels.

Types

First-generation stents are made of bare metal. Although they nearly eliminated the risk of arterial collapse, they modestly reduced the risk of re-narrowing. A quarter of all coronary arteries treated with pure metal stents re close, usually within about 6 months.

So doctors and companies began testing stents coated with drugs that could interfere with the narrow ones again. These are called drug-eluting stents.

In clinical trials, these reduced narrow cases to less than 10%. They also reduce the need for repetitive procedures for people with diabetes, as their arteries are more likely to narrow again.

However, there is concern that drug-eluting stents may be associated with a rare but serious complication called in-stent thrombosis. This is where a blood clot forms one or more years after being implanted in a stent.

Since this problem is fatal, it is important for people with drug-eluting stents to take aspirin and the prescribed blood-thinning drug.

What are the benefits of cardiac stenting?

For many, stenting has a positive effect on quality of life. The combination of angioplasty and stenting can be life saving, especially when done after a heart attack.

This will significantly improve your blood flow and prevent further damage to the heart muscle. It also improves symptoms of heart disease such as chest pain (angina) and shortness of breath. In many cases, you will experience immediate benefits.

In some cases, stenting eliminates the need for coronary bypass surgery. Stenting is much less invasive than bypass surgery. Recovery time is also very short. It only takes a few days to recover from stenting, while it may take six weeks or more to recover from bypass surgery.

Whether or not you are a good candidate for stenting depends on many factors, including the number of blocked arteries and other conditions you may have.

How is a cardiac stent inserted?

Your doctor can insert a heart stent under local anesthesia. First, they make small incisions in the groin, arm, or neck. Then they inserted the catheter with the stent and the balloon at the tip.

They use special dyes and monitors to guide the catheter into the narrowed or blocked coronary artery through the blood vessels. When they reach a narrow or blocked area, they inflate the balloon. It dilates the stent and dilates your artery, increasing blood flow. Finally, your doctor will remove the balloon, remove the catheter, and leave the stent.

During this process, the filter plate and blood clot loosen and float freely in the bloodstream. After the procedure, you will need to take medicine to prevent clots from forming inside the stent. As your artery begins to heal, your own tissue begins to fuse with the mesh of the stent, strengthening your artery.

Sometimes a specific type of stent called a drug-eluting stent (DES) is used. It is coated with medication to reduce the risk of restenosis. Restenosis occurs when your artery narrows again.

What are the risks for cardiac stenting?

As with many medical procedures, you may experience an allergic reaction to the medications or substances used for angioplasty and stenting. Angioplasty can cause bleeding, damage to blood vessels or the heart, or even an irregular heartbeat. Other potential but rare complications such as heart attack, kidney failure, and stroke.

After the procedure, scar tissue forms inside your stent. If that happens, a second approach is needed to clear it up. There is also a risk of blood clots forming on your stent. You need to take medicine to prevent this. Report any chest pain to your doctor immediately.

How is a cardiac stent done?

There are many ways to insert a stent.

Your doctor will usually insert the stent using a minimally invasive procedure. They make a small incision and use a catheter to guide specific devices through the blood vessels to reach the area where the stent is needed. This incision is usually made in the groin or hand. One of those tools may have a camera at the end to help your doctor guide the stent.

During the procedure, your doctor may also use an imaging technique called angiography.

With the necessary tools, your doctor will find a blocked or broken vessel and install the stent. Then the instruments will be removed from your body and the incision closed.

What Happens During Cardiac Stent Placement?

Cardiac stents are placed during cardiac catheterization. First, your child will be anesthetized to fall asleep during this process. Then:

The cardiologist places a long, thin tube called a catheter into the blood vessel, usually in the groin.

The doctor guides the catheter into the heart. A special colored doctor helps to see the vessels clearly.

Using a catheter, the doctor placed an open stent in the vessel.

When the procedure is finished, the doctor will remove the instruments and catheter and place the bandage on the site.

What happens after a cardiac stent is placed?

Watch your child closely for several hours after placement. A bandage at the surgery site can help prevent bleeding. Typically, within 4 to 6 hours, your child should lie down with their leg straight until the doctor tells them to get up.

The doctor will also talk about you:

• Pain medication
• If you have a long trip home, your baby should get up and move.
• Your child can eat and drink
• Continue the medications your child started before or after the procedure
• When to remove the bandage
• When your child can bathe
• When your child returns to school, regular sports and activities

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What are the complications with inserting a stent?

Any surgical procedure carries risks. Stent insertion requires access to the arteries of the heart or brain. This increases the risk of adverse effects.

Disadvantages associated with stenting:

• Allergic reaction to drugs or dyes used in the process.
• Breathing problems due to anesthesia or the use of a stent in the windpipe.
• Bleeding
• Blockage of the artery
• Blood clots
• Myocardial infarction
• Vessel infection
• Kidney stones due to the use of kidney stones.
• Narrowing of the back of the artery.
• Rare side effects include strokes and seizures.

Some problems with the stent have been reported, but there is a small chance that the body will reject the stent. You should discuss this risk with your doctor. Stents contain metal parts and some people are allergic or sensitive to metals. If someone is sensitive to metal, stent manufacturers recommend that the stent not be placed. Talk to your doctor for more information.

If you have bleeding problems, your doctor should evaluate you. Generally, you should discuss these issues with your doctor. They can provide you with up-to-date information regarding your personal problems.

Very often, the damage caused by stent failure is overcome. Limited blood flow or blocked vessels can have serious and deadly consequences.