Why is Plavix given after stent implantation?
Stents are tiny mesh tubes used to prop open an artery after a balloon angioplasty opens a clog. Bare-metal stents sometimes clog. Newer, drug-coated (or drug-eluting) stents also clog, although not nearly as often. But they take much longer to heal — increasing the risk of a deadly blood clot forming at the site of the stent. Blood-thinning treatment with a combination of Plavix and aspirin is given to help prevent these clots in people given stents.
