Stent: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia

P A stent is a tiny tube placed into a hollow structure in your body. This structure can be an artery, a blood vessel, or something such as the tube that carries urine (ureter). The stent holds the structure open.

T Description
P When a stent is placed into the body, the procedure is called stenting. There are different kinds of stents. Most are made of a metal or plastic mesh-like material. However, stent grafts are made of fabric. They are used in larger arteries.
P A coronary artery stent is a small, self-expanding, metal mesh tube. It is placed inside a coronary artery after balloon angioplasty. This stent prevents the artery from re-closing.
P A drug-eluting stent is coated with a medicine. This medicine helps further prevent the arteries from re-closing. Like other coronary artery stents, it is left permanently in the artery.

T Why the Procedure is Performed
P Most of the time, stents are used when arteries become narrow or blocked.
P Stents are commonly used to treat the following conditions that result from blocked or damaged blood vessels:
- Coronary heart disease (CHD) (angioplasty and stent placement - heart)
- Peripheral artery disease (angioplasty and stent replacement - peripheral arteries)
- Renal artery stenosis
- Abdominal aortic aneurysm (aortic aneurysm repair - endovascular)
- Carotid artery disease (carotid artery surgery)
P Other reasons to use stents include:
- Keeping open a blocked or damaged ureter (percutaneous urinary procedures)
- Treating aneurysms, including thoracic aortic aneurysms
- Keeping bile flowing in blocked bile ducts (biliary stricture)
- Helping you breathe if you have a blockage in the airways

T Risks
P Related topics include:
- Angioplasty and stent placement - heart
- Angioplasty and stent placement - peripheral arteries
- Percutaneous urinary procedures
- Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS)
- Carotid artery surgery
- Aortic aneurysm repair - endovascular
- Thoracic aortic aneurysm

T Alternative Names
P Drug-eluting stents; Urinary or ureteral stents; Coronary stents

T Patient Instructions
- Angioplasty and stent - heart - discharge
- Angioplasty and stent placement - carotid artery - discharge
- Angioplasty and stent placement - peripheral arteries - discharge
- Aortic aneurysm repair - endovascular - discharge
- Cardiac catheterization - discharge
- Carotid artery surgery - discharge
- Percutaneous urinary procedures - discharge
- Peripheral artery bypass - leg - discharge

T Images
- Coronary artery stent
- Coronary artery balloon angioplasty - series

T References
P Teirstein PS, Lytle BW. Interventional and surgical treatment of coronary artery disease. In: Goldman L, Schafer AI, eds. Goldman's Cecil Medicine. 25th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier Saunders; 2016:chap 74.
P White CJ. Atherosclerotic peripheral arterial disease. In: Goldman L, Schafer AI, eds. Goldman's Cecil Medicine. 25th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier Saunders; 2016:chap 79.
P Zeidel ML. Obstructive uropathy. In: Goldman L, Schafer AI, eds. Goldman's Cecil Medicine. 25th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier Saunders; 2016:chap 123.

T Review Date 6/6/2016
P Updated by: Deepak Sudheendra, MD, RPVI, Assistant Professor of Interventional Radiology & Surgery at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, with an expertise in Vascular Interventional Radiology & Surgical Critical Care, Philadelphia, PA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Isla Ogilvie, PhD, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.

