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Ency. home > Surgery > A > Angioplasty

Angioplasty    See images

Overview | Recovery | Risks

Alternative names:

Balloon angioplasty; Coronary angioplasty; Coronary artery angioplasty; Cardiac angioplasty; PTCA; Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty; Heart artery dilatation

Definition:

Angioplasty is a procedure to open narrowed or blocked blood vessels of the heart (coronary arteries). See also cardiac catheterization and angiogram.

Description

Fat and cholesterol accumulate on the inside of arteries and form deposits called plaque. This disease process is called atherosclerosis. The arteries that supply blood to the heart itself (called the coronary arteries) can be narrowed or blocked by this accumulation.

If the blockage is not major, the problem may be treated with a balloon catheter rather than major surgery. The catheter is a small, hollow, flexible tube that has a balloon near the end of it.

While the patient is awake and pain-free (under local anesthesia), the catheter is inserted into an artery at the top of the leg. X-ray pictures are taken to view the catheter as it is passed up the artery, into the aorta, and into the blocked coronary artery. The small balloon at the end of the catheter is inflated and widens the area of the blockage, restoring adequate blood flow through the artery to the heart muscle.

A device called a stent is almost always placed. This is a small tube that is placed within the coronary artery to keep the vessel open. A common type of stent is made of self-expanding, stainless steel mesh.

Indications

Angioplasty may be performed to treat:

  • Persistent chest pain (angina)
  • Blockage of only one or two coronary arteries
  • Residual obstruction in a coronary artery after a heart attack

Ency. home > Surgery > A > Angioplasty

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