A coronary angioplasty is a procedure used to widen blocked or narrowed coronary arteries.
Coronary angioplasty is necessary when hardening and narrowing of the coronary arteries prevents the heart from getting enough blood to function normally.
Coronary angioplasty is also known as percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) or percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).
A coronary angioplasty is one of the most common types of treatment for the heart. Over 800 procedures are performed in our centers each year.
Coronary angioplasty has many advantages compared with surgical treatment of coronary heart disease (coronary artery bypass), carrying lower risks and being less expensive. A much shorter recovery time allows patients to resume their normal activites and return at their workplace within just a few days.
Procedure
During an angioplasty, a flexible tube called a catheter is used to insert a stent into the coronary artery. The procedure usually takes 30 minutes, but it can take longer depending on how many segments of the artery need treatment.
Before a coronary angioplasty is carried out, the arteries of your heart need to be assessed to make sure that the procedure is technically possible. This is done using coronary angiography (see more on our website in the Coronary Angiography section).
In our centers, coronary angioplasties are performed at the same time with coronary angiographies, the cost of the coronary angiography being included in that of the coronary angioplasty.
Thus, instead of doubling the risks performing two procedures, we offer our patients the alternative of treating them in a single intervention, with minimal risks.
Mitral regurgitation (MR) is a condition in which the heart’s mitral valve leaflets do not close tightly. When this happens, blood flows backward from the heart’s left ventricle into the left atrium. The heart must then work harder to push blood through the body, which can cause fatigue, shortness of breath and worsening heart failure. It is the most common type of heart valve insufficiency.
A coronary angioplasty is a procedure used to widen blocked or narrowed coronary arteries.
A coronary angioplasty is a procedure used to widen blocked or narrowed coronary arteries.
The decrease in postsurgical nasal edema following rhinoplasty was found to be highly accurate using three-dimensional morphometric assessment, according to a study in the December edition of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.
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The decrease in postsurgical nasal edema following rhinoplasty was found to be highly accurate using three-dimensional morphometric assessment, according to a study in the December edition of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.
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More than 600,000 knee-replacement surgeries are done in the United States every year, and as Baby Boomers continue to age, some say that figure will grow to 1 million within the next decade. Patients are increasingly choosing an option that allows doctors to build their patient’s knees.
Less than a year ago, climbing a flight of stairs would have been impossible for Amanda Fair-Evans. “I couldn’t even get out of the car, and I was like, ‘What is this?’” Fair-Evans said. The pain in her left knee was unbearable. Fair-Evans tried medication and cortisone shots and finally begged her doctor for surgery. “I have no quality of life,” Fair-Evans recalled saying. “I have grandkids and I want to play with my grandkids. Please give me a new knee.”
Dr. Mathew Pombo, an orthopedic surgeon, felt Fair-Evans would be a great candidate for a personalized replacement knee. A standing CT scan of a patient’s leg captures the alignment, followed by a three-dimensional printing process. “We can input components into the computer and print off a specific femur and a specific tibia that fits the bone perfectly,” Pombo said. It takes about six weeks for a medical company to create the custom knee. During surgery, doctors remove the damaged joint. Then, using individually designed tools, surgeons insert the new joint and cement it in. “It’s basically like putting a train on perfectly aligned train tracks,” Pombo said. “It should wear better.”
Five months later, Fair-Evans had her other knee replaced. Now she’s back to the things she loves to do. “(I’m) taking long walks, playing with my grandkids and dancing,” Fair-Evans said. “I haven’t danced in a long time.” Pombo said there is a faster recovery, less blood loss and easier range of motion when patients have the personalized 3D knee surgery.
When is a woman eligible for breast surgery?
