Stents are commonly used in patients suffering from heart disease, inserted into the coronary arteries to open them and increase the blood flow to the heart in a procedure known as angioplasty. Technology has now produced biodegradable stents that have been tested and found to be safe for long-term use in heart patients.
In Mumbai, the Asian Heart Institute is leading the way for Indian hospitals in using the new generation of biodegradable stents for angioplasty surgery. The stents used to be made from wire mesh and are now made from material that eventually dissolves in the body.
Stents have been used in heart surgery since the late 1970s. The blood vessels or coronary arteries that supply the heart can become narrowed and hardened, particularly in older people. This process, known as atherosclerosis, causes the flow of blood to the heart to slow or become restricted, leading to angina.
The stents are small tubes that are inserted into those narrowed arteries to open them wide enough so that blood flows normally again. The old-style stents often caused the tissue in the artery to scar so that, over time, the artery began to close over again, known as restenosis.
Today’s bio-absorbable stents will dissolve in the body within 18 months of being inserted and so reduce the risk of restenosis. The stents were given the go-ahead for widespread use in India after a clinical trial involving 100 heart patients.
Another advantage of the biodegradable stents is that they do not interfere with the machinery used to scan the body, allowing medics to spot and treat any potential blockages that might occur in the arteries of the heart.
Patients who have angina or had a heart attack will see major health benefits after having a stent fitted. The procedure brings pain relief, eases the symptoms of breathlessness and improves your ability to do everyday activities such as walking or climbing stairs. It will also reduce the chance of you suffering another heart attack.
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