What Is a Coronary Stent and How Is Angioplasty Done?

"If we find a narrowing, we may open it with a balloon and leave a small stent in place." If you've heard a cardiologist say something like that, you probably left with more questions than answers. What's a stent, exactly? How does it get all the way into a heart artery? And does it stay there? The video at the top of this page walks through the coronary stent procedure in plain terms, and the answers below follow the order most people ask those questions in.

First — what is the stent itself?

It's smaller and simpler than most people picture. A coronary stent is a tiny tube made of wire mesh. It isn't a replacement artery, and it doesn't pump or move. Its only job is to act as a scaffold: once it's expanded inside a narrowed section of a coronary artery — one of the vessels supplying the heart muscle itself — it holds that section open so blood can flow through more freely. If you'd like a second, slower explanation of that idea, this site's video on what a stent is and how it works describes it in the same way, as a small mesh tube inserted during an angioplasty procedure to restore blood flow.

So what does angioplasty mean, then?

Angioplasty is the procedure that gets the stent there. As the video on this page shows, you'll lie on a padded table and stay awake during it, with medicine to help you relax and to ease discomfort. The doctor inserts a thin, flexible tube — a catheter — into an artery, sometimes in the arm or wrist and sometimes in the upper leg or groin, and guides it towards the heart using live X-ray pictures. A dye is injected to highlight blood flow on those pictures, which is how the team can see exactly where a vessel is narrowed or blocked. Understanding why that narrowing matters is easier if you've read our guide to what happens during a heart attack — angioplasty is one of the hospital treatments that can follow.

Where does the balloon come in?

Once the catheter is in position, a fine guide wire is moved into and across the narrowed area, and a balloon catheter is passed over that wire so the balloon sits inside the blockage. When the balloon is inflated, it presses the narrowing open and restores flow through the vessel. In many cases a stent is placed at the same time: the mesh tube is carried in on the balloon catheter, it expands as the balloon inflates, and when the balloon is deflated and withdrawn, the stent stays behind, holding the artery open from the inside.

And what happens once you're home?

The stent itself stays in the artery permanently — that's by design, not something left behind by mistake. Afterwards, the focus shifts to recovery at the catheter entry site, follow-up appointments, and any medicines your own cardiology team prescribes for you; follow the instructions you are actually given rather than a general article, because that part is individual. What this procedure doesn't do is remove the underlying reasons an artery narrowed in the first place, so the longer-term conversations about risk factors and daily habits still matter, and they belong with the team who knows your heart, your other conditions, and your test results.

MedicalVideos.com has published trusted medical videos since 2007. The site was founded by Dr. Mohamed Ibrahim, MD, PhD — physician, researcher, and former Duke faculty.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is a stent the same thing as angioplasty?
No. Angioplasty is the procedure — guiding a catheter to a narrowed heart artery and opening it, usually with a balloon. A stent is the small wire-mesh tube that is often left in place during that procedure to help keep the artery open.

Are you awake while a stent is fitted?
Yes, in the procedure shown in the video on this page the patient stays awake, lying on a padded table, with medicine given to help with relaxation and discomfort while live X-ray pictures guide the catheter.

Does the stent come out again later?
No. The stent expands inside the artery when the balloon inflates, the balloon is then removed, and the stent is left there permanently as a scaffold holding the vessel open.

Is angioplasty the same as heart bypass surgery?
No. Angioplasty works from inside the artery through a catheter, with no large chest incision. Bypass surgery is an operation that creates a new route for blood around a blocked section. Which approach, if either, suits a particular person is a decision for their cardiology and surgical teams.

Educational only — this article is general information about coronary stents and angioplasty, not medical advice and not a diagnosis. If you have chest pain or other symptoms that could be from your heart, seek urgent medical care. If you have been offered angioplasty, discuss your own situation with your cardiologist, who knows your history and your test results.