A stent is a tiny, expandable metal mesh coil that is inserted into a newly opened area of an artery to help keep the artery from narrowing or closing again. Stents are used in angioplasty procedures to open blocked coronary arteries caused by coronary artery disease, restoring blood flow to the heart. Most stents are coated with medicine to prevent scar tissue from forming inside the stent, which helps prevent the blood vessel from becoming narrow again. These stents are called drug-eluting stents (DES) . There are two main types of stents: bare metal stents (BMS) and drug-eluting stents (DES) . Bare metal stents dont have a medicine coating and may have higher rates of stenosis, but they don't require long-term use of antiplatelet medicines.
During an angioplasty procedure, a stent is fitted onto a balloon and opens up as the balloon is inflated. The stent is left inside the artery after the balloon is deflated and removed, and the cardiologist will check that the artery is wide enough to allow blood to flow through more easily. Stents are used to treat a variety of artery and other problems, and they are inserted in an angioplasty procedure, either as an emergency to treat a heart attack or in a planned way to widen an artery that is being narrowed by a build-up of fatty plaque.
Stents are cylindrical in shape and are made from a very fine metal mesh, such as stainless steel, platinum-chromium, or cobalt-chromium. They can treat heart attacks and angina when used in coronary arteries, and they can also be used in the legs to treat peripheral arterial disease and occasionally in the neck or the renal arteries. Stents are left in permanently and are used to hold the artery open in an area where there is a narrowing.
