Which procedure is performed in conjunction with an angioplasty and leaves a small expandable wire tube in the artery to keep it open?

Which procedure is performed in conjunction with an angioplasty and leaves a small expandable wire tube in the artery to keep it open?

• A. Stenting
• B. Atherectomy
• C. Intravascular ultrasound
• D. Left heart catheterization

Answer: (A)

After balloon angioplasty, a stent is often placed to keep the artery open. A stent is a small expandable mesh tube inserted at the treated site that acts as a scaffold, holding the vessel lumen open as it heals. This prevents elastic recoil and reduces the chance of restenosis or dissection causing re-narrowing. Over time the stent becomes integrated into the vessel wall, and many stents are coated with drugs to further reduce tissue growth that could narrow the artery again. Other procedures don’t leave a permanent scaffold: removing plaque with atherectomy, imaging with intravascular ultrasound, or performing a diagnostic left heart catheterization.

After balloon angioplasty, a stent is often placed to keep the artery open. A stent is a small expandable mesh tube inserted at the treated site that acts as a scaffold, holding the vessel lumen open as it heals. This prevents elastic recoil and reduces the chance of restenosis or dissection causing re-narrowing. Over time the stent becomes integrated into the vessel wall, and many stents are coated with drugs to further reduce tissue growth that could narrow the artery again. Other procedures don’t leave a permanent scaffold: removing plaque with atherectomy, imaging with intravascular ultrasound, or performing a diagnostic left heart catheterization.