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Index of Diseases and Conditions: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Angioplasty

If you have coronary artery disease, the arteries in your heart are narrowed or blocked by a sticky material called plaque. Angioplasty is a procedure to restore blood flow through the artery.

The doctor threads a thin tube through a blood vessel in the arm or groin up to the involved site in the artery. The tube has a tiny balloon on the end. When the tube is in place, the doctor inflates the balloon to push the plaque outward against the wall of the artery. This widens the artery and restores blood flow.

Doctors may use angioplasty to

Each year more than a million people in the United States have coronary angioplasty.

National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

Angioplasty on Wikipedia

'''Angioplasty''' is the mechanical dilation of an artery that have been obstructed, generally due to atheroma (the lesion of atherosclerosis).

Coronary angioplasty

One way to unblock (open up the lumen) of a coronary artery (or other blood vessel) is angioplasty, or Percutaneous Transluminal Coronary Angioplasty (PTCA). A wire is passed through the diseased coronary artery, to beyond the area of coronary artery that is being worked upon. Over this wire, a balloon catheter is passed into the segment that is to be opened up. The end of the catheter contains a small folded balloon. When the balloon is hydraulically inflated, it compresses the atheromatous plaque and streches the artery wall to expand. At the same time, if an expandable wire mesh tube (stent) was on the balloon, then the stent will be implanted (left behind) to support the new stretched open position of the artery from the inside. Angioplasty and stenting is performed through a thin flexible catheter during Cardiac Catheterization, often making coronary artery bypass surgery unnecessary. While coronary angioplasty has consistently been shown to reduce symptoms due to coronary artery disease and to reduce cardiac ischemia, it has not been shown in large trials to reduce mortality due to coronary artery disease. Traditional ("bare metal") coronary stents provide a mechanical framework that holds the artery wall open, preventing stenosis, or narrowing, of arteries feeding critical structures like the myocardium. Traditional stenting is superior to angioplasty alone in keeping arteries open. Newer stents (called drug-eluting stents) are coated with drugs that prevent re-stenosis of the artery. Two drugs, sirolimus and paclitaxel, have been demonstrated effective and safe in this application by stent device manufacturers and are being used in ...   [ Read More ]

External Resources

Cell Genesys - Focused on the development and commercialization of cancer vaccines and gene therapies to treat various cancers including leukemia, hemophilia A and B, restenosis after angioplasty and Parkinson's disease.

Pan Medical Ltd., - Manufacturer and supplier of stent, Balloon catheters and angioplasty balloons.

Novoste Corporation - Develops intraluminal beta radiation catheter delivery system designed to reduce the frequency of restenosis, subsequent to percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty. (Nasdaq: NOVT).

Vascular Solutions - Vascular Solutions is engaged in the development of the Duett(TM) vascular sealing device to address the clinical need for a safe and effective method to rapidly seal the arterial access site following catheterization procedures such as angiography, angioplasty and stenting.

Angioplasty - An article and some images about this procedure.

CardiologyChannel - Angioplasty is a general term used to describe a procedure for treating such blockages and/or blood clots. Get information here on diagnosis and treatments for this condition. Find a Cardiologist in your area.

Angioplasty / PTCA Home Page - Extensive resources for interventional cardiologists and patients alike, discussion forum, list of meetings worldwide, extensive historical information, interviews with pioneering cardiologists and industry leaders.

Angioplasty / PTCA Home Page - Offers resources for healthcare professionals and patients, a discussion forum, list of meetings and historical information.

VascularSurgery.com - Information on vascular diagnosis, noninvasive vascular testing, vascular surgery, endovascular surgery, angioplasty, and stenting. Brochures for patients in Acrobat format.

Peripheral Angioplasty - Technique, indications, and complications of renal, iliac, femoral, carotid arterial, and venous intervention are described in step-by-step fashion.

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