What Is Angioplasty Surgery?
Angioplasty surgery is a procedure used to widen vessels and arteries that have shrunk, hardened, or become blocked. In angioplasty surgery, totally obstructed or narrowed blood vessels are mechanically widened using either small balloons or stents. In a balloon angioplasty procedure, a small balloon is guided to the narrowed artery using a specially designed catheter. Thereafter, doctors inflate the balloon to push all fat deposits against the artery wall, thereby widening the artery to increase blood flow. A stent angioplasty surgery requires placement of a metal mesh tube to provide support to coronary arteries. As with balloon angioplasty surgery, a catheter and balloon are used to guide the stent to the appropriate area. Once in place, the balloon is inflated, expanding the stent to the size of the artery, thus, holding it open. Thereafter, the balloon is deflated and removed while the stent stays in place and the artery heals around it. After either procedure, patients typically
