Angioplasty

Angioplasty is a procedure to open a narrowed or blocked artery — most commonly a coronary (heart) artery, but also arteries in the legs, neck, or elsewhere. A thin tube (catheter) is guided to the blockage, a small balloon on the tip is inflated to widen the vessel, and usually a mesh tube (stent) is placed to keep it open.

When is angioplasty done?

• Emergency — during a heart attack — to quickly reopen the blocked artery ("primary PCI" — percutaneous coronary intervention). The faster this happens, the more heart muscle is saved.
• For angina that isn't controlled with medicines — particularly from significant coronary artery narrowing
• Peripheral artery disease — leg artery blockages
• Carotid artery narrowing — in selected cases, to prevent stroke
• Renal artery narrowing — for some cases of difficult-to-control hypertension

What to expect

• Done under local anaesthesia (you are usually awake)
• Access is via a small puncture in the wrist (radial) or groin (femoral)
• A catheter is threaded to the affected artery
• Contrast dye outlines the blockage
• A balloon is inflated to open the artery
• A stent (mesh tube) is usually placed to keep the artery open
• The procedure typically takes 30-90 minutes
• Most people go home within 24-48 hours
• Emergency angioplasty (for heart attack) is done as quickly as possible — minutes matter

Risks

Like any medical procedure, angioplasty has some risk — low in experienced hands:

• Bleeding at the puncture site
• Blood vessel injury
• Blood clot in the stent (reduced by antiplatelet medicines)
• Irregular heart rhythms
• Contrast dye reactions
• Kidney injury from contrast (particularly in pre-existing kidney disease)
• Rarely, heart attack, stroke, death
• Restenosis — re-narrowing over time; much less common with modern drug-eluting stents

After angioplasty

• Antiplatelet medicines (usually two, for a prescribed period) — sometimes lifelong. Never stop these on your own — stopping early can cause stent thrombosis (a medical emergency)
• Lifestyle and risk-factor control — angioplasty opens the blockage but doesn't cure the underlying disease. Without lifestyle changes, new blockages can develop.
• Cardiac rehabilitation — meaningfully improves long-term outcomes
• Gradual return to activity — usually back to normal within a week or two; follow your cardiologist's guidance

Angioplasty services are widely available across India, including through government schemes for eligible patients. Emergency angioplasty for heart attack should be available at any tertiary cardiac centre — families should know where the nearest is in advance of needing it.