Many blockages in arteries and veins can be treated with angioplasty and stenting.  This minimally invasive approach allows improvement in blood flow without the need for painful surgical incisions and prolonged recovery.

Using local anesthesia and sedation, a needle can be placed through the skin and into an artery, usually in the groin or arm.  Through this various catheters and wires can be passed under x-ray guidance, and blockages in the circulation can be identified.  During the angioplasty procedure a catheter with a balloon on the tip is positioned across the blockage.  When the balloon is inflated, the narrowed blood vessel is opened.  If there is any residual narrowing after the balloon is deflated, a flexible, expandable metal stent is placed in the narrowed area to keep the blood vessel open.

Not all blockages may be treated with angioplasty and stenting and only your surgeon can decide when this treatment is right for you.  However, when blockages may be treated with this method, most patients are walking and discharged home in a few hours after the procedure.

For a more extensive description of this procedure as well as other helpful patient information please visit:

http://www.vascularweb.org/patients/NorthPoint/Angioplasty_and_Stenting.html

http://www.vascularweb.org/patients/index.html

http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4692