Angioplasty

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the procedure of percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA). It discusses the rationale of the procedure as well as the fundamentals of the procedure itself. The paper also touches on the evolution of the catheter used in interventional cardiology as well as their specific applications. It finally discusses the pros and cons of the procedure.

From the Paper:

"Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) have become a mainstay in modern medicine and revolutionized the medical management of a variety of coronary pathologies from life-threatening acute myocardial infarctions, unstable angina to valvular heart disease. PCI have one distinct advantage over pharmacological therapy (i.e. thrombolysis or "clot-busters"), now considered to be conservative (albeit first-line) therapy for myocardial infarctions: time-saving. The importance of this lies in the fact that the arteries supplying the heart are "functional end arteries" - they not only conduct oxygen and nutrients directly to the surrounding myocardium through diffusion, but are also the only arteries supplying a certain region. With its very high oxygen and nutrient consumption, any obstruction in any of the arteries by as much as half would significantly hamper overall pumping of the heart."

More papers on Angioplasty:

• Research Paper # 105427 : "Drug Eluting Stents"
• Research Paper # 110956 : "The Problem of Heart Disease"
• Research Paper # 93257 : "The Circulatory System"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: