Heart Stents Information about
Stents in the Heart

In 1994, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved heart stents or coronary artery stenting which had been introduced and performed from the mid '80s. Heart stents are a small, expandable, wire mesh tube which are permanently implanted into a heart artery that is diseased. Heart stents help the diseased artery stay open. The procedure is sometime referred to as a catheter-based procedure. Heart stents are delivered to the blood vessels via catheters that are guided through the circulatory system to the diseased artery.

Heart stents are commonly used after a balloon angioplasty which has expanded the diseased artery. Together heart stents with angioplasty is capable of reducing the degree of blockage in an artery by more than 90 percent. This is a boon for patients with heart disease because the two procedures together have reduced the number of heart bypass surgeries.

Experience and technology concerning heart stents has improved so that a wider population of patients including those who have already suffered a heart attack, the elderly, and folks with more complex artery diseases may have this procedure. In my own case, I had a heart stent placed while I was having a heart attack.

There are several benefits that may be gained from heart stents:

• Chest pain pressure, often called angina, may be reduced
• Shortness of breath may be reduced
• Heart attack risk may be reduced after the procedure
• Less additional medical treatment with drugs needed
• Less risk of the artery closing again, a condition called restenosis

Overall the safety of heart stents has been demonstrated in both male and female patients. However, some studies have shown a sadistically higher risk of heart attack or death in women one month after a stenting procedure.

Heart stents are permanently implanted into their host arteries. When heart stents were first introduced they were made from bare metal which reduced artery closing rate from 50 percent to about 20 percent. In 2003, the next generation of heart stents were introduced. These heart stents are called drug-eluting stents, like the like Cypher® Sirolimus-eluding Coronary Stent. These heart stents are coated with special drugs that further reduce the closure of a stented artery to less than 10 percent. They are now used in most heart stent procedures.

Remember, if you are a candidate for a heart stent, ask you doctor all the questions you can think of early in the consultation. May your heart health improve.

An often asked question asked by air travelers is: Can heart stents be detected by metal detectors in airports? Metal detectors have not been found to interfere with or detect the presence of heart stents.

DISCLAIMER: This information is not presented by a medical practitioner and is for educational and informational purposes only. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read.