Coronary Angioplasty

CORONARY ANGIOPLASTY

Coronary Angioplasty is also known as percutaneous coronary intervention. This is the procedure performed to open the blocks in the heart arteries. As a part of this medical procedure, catheter is inserted into the coronary artery, which has a tiny balloon that gets inflated into the blocked area. This kind of inflation compresses the fatty tissue in the coronary artery and makes the opening larger, allowing free flow of blood.

Why is this procedure performed?

Coronary angioplasty is done to treat atherosclerosis, which is narrowed or blocked arteries in the heart. The surgeon may suggest angioplasty when the medications fail to improve the heart conditions of the patient, especially when he/she has had a heart attack or suffering from terrible chest pain.

The doctor would decide if the person requires an angioplasty or a coronary artery bypass surgery, since this depends on the number of blockages and the strength of the heart.

Advantages of Coronary Angioplasty:

The key advantage of coronary angioplasty is:

• Low risk of infection
• Less pain
• Avoid large scars
• Simple post-operative care
• Short hospital stay

Most of the interventional cardiology procedures are performed on an out-patient basis. At the maximum, it may require only one or two days stay at the hospital, based on the health condition of the patient. This kind of procedure usually does not require large incisions and mostly the incision will be approximately over one inch.

Procedure for Angioplasty:

During the procedure the person will be sedated, however general anaesthesia is not required. The person is given IV fluids, medicines to relax and blood-thinning medicines through an IV catheter. The procedure begins after this preparation is done;

• The incision area is numbed and a small needle is used to get the artery either from the leg or arm. Once the artery is identified, the doctor would insert a catheter and a thread through the incision area until it reaches the blockages in the heart.
• A small amount of dye is injected through this catheter to help the surgeon to look at the X-ray images for the block, which is known as angiogram.
• A small balloon is inserted into the artery along with the catheter, which helps to widen the blocked artery. Once the artery is expanded, the balloon is deflated and removed. If the patient has several other blocks, which need to be cleared, this procedure is repeated at all these locations.

On completion of this medical procedure, the patient is recommended to hospitalize for a day under observation, such that the surgeon can observe the heart condition and advise the medications accordingly. The patient can return back to normal activities in a week’s time. The hospital will also advise you on the kind of activities that can be avoided for a while, which will help to maintain and improve the heart condition quickly.