Stent



What Is a Stent?

Procedure for Getting a Stent Risks Life After the Stent A stent is a tiny tube that can play a big role in treating your heart disease. It helps keep your arteries -- the blood vessels that carry blood from your heart to other parts of your body, including the heart muscle itself -- open.

Most stents are made out of wire mesh and are permanent. Some are made out of fabric. These are called stent grafts and are often used for larger arteries.

Others are made of a material that dissolves and that your body absorbs over time. They're coated in medicine that slowly releases into your artery to prevent it from being blocked again.

Why Do I Need One? If a fatty substance called plaque builds up inside an artery, it can reduce blood flow to your heart. This is called coronary heart disease and it can cause chest pain.

The plaque can also cause a blood clot that blocks blood flowing to your heart, which may lead to a heart attack.

By keeping an artery open, stents lower your risk of chest pain. They can also treat a heart attack that's in progress.

CONTINUE READING BELOW YOU MIGHT LIKE Procedure for Getting a Stent To put a stent in, your doctor makes a small cut in a blood vessel in your groin, arm, or neck. He then threads a thin tube called a catheter through the blood vessel to the blocked artery.

The tube has a tiny balloon at the end of it. Your doctor inflates the balloon inside your blocked artery. This widens your artery so blood can flow through it again.