This procedure, which involves the artificial widening of a blood vessel or artery, is most commonly used to treat patients with heart blockages in a bid to avoid the need for open heart surgery, a highly invasive procedure with a longer recovery period than angioplasty.

The method has been increasingly used and perfected since it was first introduced at the end of the 1970s, and is now commonly used in many countries across the world.

Procedure information
Angioplasty is only mildly invasive, with the patient almost always kept conscious so that he or she can advise if there is discomfort which can help the success of the procedure. Typically, a tube is inserted through an artery in the groin, or sometimes in the arm, which is guided to the blockage site using real time imaging courtesy of a radioactive that is also introduced into the affected area. The tube is then inflated to expand the artery or vessel and sometimes a mesh tube is also left at the blockage site to aid the widening effect.

Sometimes the mesh tube, or stent, is coated with drugs that are released over time to help reduce the build up of tissue while also influencing immune response and reducing inflammation.

Recovery time
This procedure is designed to drastically reduce recovery time compared to open heart surgery, which is considerably more invasive and painful. The risk of the surgery failing is also less than for open heart surgery although studies suggest the latter offers a more permanent solution.

Angioplasty patients will usually be out of hospital a few days after the procedure has been performed and can expect the pain and the risk of infection to be minimal, even in the short term. Bruising at the site where the various needles and tubing were introduced, usually in the groin, will likely be bruised and a little painful for a few days afterwards but should clear up within two weeks.