Angioplasty
Angioplasty is a medical procedure in which a balloon is used to open narrowed or blocked blood vessels of the heart (coronary arteries). It is not considered to be a type of surgery. See also cardiac catheterization and angiogram.
Risks
The risks for any anesthesia are:
- Reactions to medications
- Problems breathing
- Bleeding
- Infection
- Complete obstruction of blood flow to an area of the heart (risk is less than 1%)
- Damage to a valve or blood vessel
- Stroke (less than 1%)
- Arrhythmia
- Bleeding in area where the catheter was inserted
- Kidney failure (1% risk; those who have kidney functioning problems before the procedure are at highest risk)
- Allergic reaction to the x-ray dye
- Death
Usually, the average hospital stay is less than 2 days. Often times, an overnight hospital stay is not required at all. In general, persons who have angioplasty are able to walk around within 6 hours after the procedure. Complete recovery takes a week or less. You should keep the area where the catheter was inserted dry for 24 to 48 hours.
Credit: National Institute of Health.