What is a heart stent & why would you need it?
A heart stent is a medical device that is often placed in the coronary artery of the heart to keep it open and support the blood flow throughout your body. The coronary artery sometimes narrows down, which reduces the amount of blood that flows through the artery. The stunted flow of blood can cause serious and severe consequences and even death if not acted upon quickly. The narrowing of the artery is caused due to cardiovascular diseases such as coronary heart disease.
So, if you are suffering from cardiovascular diseases that cause your major arteries to narrow down and eventually shut off altogether, you need heart stent surgery. But, what is a heart stent? It is a medical device that is basically like a tube that is placed in your artery that prevents the artery from closing down. Think of it like this; you are placing a stick in your mouth, so your mouth can’t close anymore. This is a gross oversimplification, but in practice, this is what it is.
Why Would You Need A Heart Stent?
There are many reasons why you need a heart stent. You can have plaque buildup in the major arteries that supply blood to and from your heart. You can also have any disease that causes your arteries to narrow down by themselves. Both of these situations require the placement of a heart stent inside the clogged/blocked arteries to effectively save your life from a stroke or a heart attack.
The heart stent prevents your arteries from narrowing down again for a considerable period of time, and this brings upon the next part, what materials are used for making heart stents? And how safe is it for your body?
What Materials Are Used For Creating Heart Stents?
Heart stents are made from a variety of materials, from metal wire gauzes to silicone or plastic. The material used in manufacturing depends a lot on the requirement you have. Doctors decide upon what stent is best for you based on your medical history, your pre-existing conditions, and your overall health risks. Overall, you can still expect that a stent is a permanent solution for your problem. However, there are temporary stents as well.
These temporary stents are made from materials that are absorbed by your body. Usually, these stents are coated with medicine that prevents your artery from narrowing down again in the future. Temporary stents are becoming more and more popular today as they are safer. As they dissolve in your body, they can not cause any further complications due to their placement.
What Are The Risks Of A Heart Stent?
A heart stent is a very safe medical device, and its implantation is also a very safe procedure. However, every surgical procedure comes with a certain amount of risks, and here are the risks of a heart stent.
Bleeding from the site of the tube insertion
Infection
Damage to the blood vessel from the tube
Irregular heartbeat/arrhythmia
These risks are incredibly rare, and at most, there is a 1-2% chance that you will be suffering from these side effects. To keep yourself even safer, be very clear and open to your doctor about your medical history. This will help you reduce the risk percentages even more.
What Happens After A Heart Stent Surgery?
A heart stent surgery requires very little recovery time. That experience can be even better if you are going through the surgery from a big hospital that is well-equipped in terms of doctors, personnel, and infrastructure. It can help reduce the recovery time and drastically improve surgery success rates. So, you must choose the best hospital for getting a heart stent surgery, such as the Medipulse hospital in Jodhpur, rated the best private and tertiary care hospital in Jodhpur.