Information on Angioplasty - Heart Disorders Message Board

mapletree · 07-04-2003, 09:18 AM

Has anyone had an Angioplasty.....if so was it painful having it done ..Thanks for any info.

CobaltBlue · 07-04-2003, 04:39 PM

Hi maple:

I have had 3 catherizations last year; 2 of which required angioplasty/stents. They are relatively painless because you are heavily sedated--albeit awake usually. Provided all goes well, the only hurdle is usually keeping your head down during the few hours recovery after they stitch the artery.

mapletree · 07-05-2003, 12:45 PM

ubernier

Thanks for the info.

I too, had 3 stents put in about 5 weeks ago.
I found it very painful at the begining and the end of the procedure.I am living in fear now of having to have it done again.

I noticed you spoke about stiching the artery. I had a plug put into the artery, I wonder if that was the difference.
You also said you were heavily sedated, I didn't appear to be , they put a tiny pill under my tongue,to relax me. Was that what you had?

You mentioned having it done three times,how did they know you needed it done again? by doing an angiogram or were you not feeling well?

The Cardiologist booked me for a "stress test" I canceled it as I have a bad hip joint, is it important I have it done? does it show what going on with the heart.

As you can see I'm a bit paranoid about the whole thing. Hope you can answer some of my questions.

Thanks again.

CobaltBlue · 07-05-2003, 06:18 PM

Hi Mapletree:

The first catherization followed my heart attack (March 15, 2002); I had my RCA 99% blocked and it required angioplasty and stent placement. I was given two valium orally about 45 min before surgery. This was my least sedated trip. (March 18, 2002). The stitch was relatively painless.

The second catherization came on July 11, 2002, after I had been trying to jog as part of my exercise for a few weeks. I noticed that my left arm became numb about 15 sec after starting to run, and I could reproduce this over and over by speeding up and slowing down. So, recognizing that this was exertional angina (and rather than wait for it to get worse) in I went again. This time they went in on the right side again. They sedated me through the IV this time. It was about the same strength as the first, but after the second stent was placed (in my LAD this time), the stitching was painful. The pain stayed with me for days after leaving the hospital this time.

A week later, I became concerned over a discomfort in my chest which I had not felt before. In I went again, and this time they went up the artery via my left leg. This time, I was so sedated that I don't remember the procedure at all, its a blank except for being wheeled in to the cold room and being wheeled out. Net result: Everything was fine, I was just suffereing from anxiety coupled with heartburn from cheap red wine.

Finally, I went in again one last time in October, again confused, again feeling what I thought was angina. This time, they decided to just do a stress test. I saw the images on my way out, and all looked great. Needless to say, that ended my period of being paranoid about every little pain.

Since then, I still worry every once in a while, but I remember what angina felt like. I know that if I am not experiencing it now while running every morning, then I am much safer than before.

I would say yes thats its important to have a routine stress test done now (based on the CHD ...). The test can give false positives and false negatives; however, in cases it can alert your cardiologist to a problem that you or I may not be able to detect yet. I am 36 now but I expect (and plan on) having a stress test conducted yearly, every November from here on.

Ulrich

1btg · 07-06-2003, 03:49 AM

Be very careful! Many cardiac patients have colapsed...permanently while jogging or swimming!.
Good luck...