A type of procedure that helps to open blocked or narrowed blood vessels, which supply blood to the heart, is angioplasty. These blood vessels are known as coronary arteries. A small metal mesh tube is a coronary stent. A heart doctor places it in a coronary artery during angioplasty. It expands there and prevents the artery from closing down again. During an online doctor consultation in India for heart-related issues, you can learn about this.

Reasons for carrying out the procedure

A mixture of fat and cholesterol called plaque gets deposited in the arteries and this leads to the narrowing or blocking of the arteries. The other term of this condition is the hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis).

Angioplasty helps to treat the following conditions:

  • During or after heart attacks when there is a blockage in a coronary artery

  • Poor heart function due to the blockage or narrowing of coronary arteries

  • Persistent chest pain (angina) when there is reduced blood flow due to narrowing of the arteries

Before the physical visit, you can have an online doctor consultation if you are suffering from these conditions.

Before the procedure

When you visit the hospital after a heart attack or for chest pain, the doctor normally carries out angioplasty. From 6 to 8 hours before the test, you should not eat or drink anything. You are allowed to take only a few sips of water to take the drugs that the doctor asks you to take. You need to inform the doctor if you are taking any other medicines. If you have any allergic reaction to iodine or contrast material tell your doctor. You should also inform your doctor if you are pregnant.

The procedure

The doctor will give you some medicines to help relieve your pain before the procedure begins. Blood-thinning medicines may also be given. A catheter will be inserted into your artery after you lie down on a padded table. He/she will normally insert the catheter through an incision in your arm, wrist or groin. While guiding the catheter up into your arteries and heart, the doctor gets help from live X-ray pictures. He/she will inject a liquid contrast, also known as ‘dye’ into your body. This highlights the blood flow through the arteries and helps the doctor to detect any blockage in the blood vessels leading to your heart. The doctor inserts a guidewire along with a balloon and takes them to the blocked area. When the balloon inflates, it restores proper blood flow to your heart by opening the blood vessel. To keep the artery open, the doctor places a stent (wire mesh tube) in the blocked area and it expands when the balloon inflates. It remains there even after the procedure is over and prevents the artery from closing down.

After the procedure

You have to normally stay in the hospital for around two days after the procedure. However, in some cases, you may not have to stay in the hospital. After going back home, you often need to have online doctor consultation in Kolkata to inform about your condition. You also have to maintain a healthy lifestyle and take the necessary medicines after the procedure to keep everything under control.