Angioplasty Specialist

As your arterial walls become coated with cholesterol and plaque, they narrow and harden. That makes it more difficult for blood to flow correctly, depriving your heart of both blood and oxygen. Coronary artery disease also weakens your heart muscle, leaving it more susceptible to failure.

Symptoms of coronary artery disease include chest pain and shortness of breath. Unfortunately, symptoms may not become noticeable until the disease has reached an advanced stage, which is why routine physical examinations and targeted screening is so critical.

If your symptoms have progressed to the point that you’re unable to perform normal daily activities, angioplasty can help. The same applies if you have skin ulcers, infections, or wounds on your legs that won’t heal.

Before the procedure, you’ll receive medication to keep you relaxed. Your practitioner also numbs the treatment area, and your surgeon inserts a small catheter into your groin. A tiny, flexible wire and a catheter with a medical balloon follow.

Your surgeon can view the inside of your artery during the procedure. Once the catheter reaches the blockage, your surgeon carefully inflates the balloon. That pressures the accumulated plaque, compressing it against your arterial wall.

In some cases, a tiny tube made of wire mesh, called a stent, is placed in the newly widened artery. This device serves to keep the artery open and allow blood to flow properly into the future.
An IV delivers a sedative and medication to thin your blood. A local anesthetic in the incision area prevents pain as your doctor inserts a guidewire and long, thin catheter into your artery.

Special dye and real-time X-ray imaging provide visual guidance as another catheter enters your artery through the first catheter. A tiny balloon at the end of this catheter is inflated and gently widens the artery to improve blood flow. In some cases, a stent is inserted during the procedure to help the artery remain open.

The process begins by gaining control of any bleeding in the surrounding area. That’s most often accomplished with one or more small incisions and surgical slings or clamps.

Once blood flow is under control, your surgeon can examine the damaged blood vessel and determine the proper repair approach. For example, they might repair some blood vessel damage via suturing. Alternatively, they might use a graft of tissue from another blood vessel or a synthetic graft to repair areas of damage.
If you have questions or concerns about angioplasty or other treatments for PAD, contact the team at Vascular Management Associates today.
An IV delivers a sedative and medication to thin your blood. A local anesthetic in the incision area prevents pain as your doctor inserts a guidewire and long, thin catheter into your artery.

Special dye and real-time X-ray imaging provide visual guidance as another catheter enters your artery through the first catheter. A tiny balloon at the end of this catheter is inflated and gently widens the artery to improve blood flow. In some cases, a stent is inserted during the procedure to help the artery remain open.