Narrowed arteries and veins can be treated non-surgically with angioplasty. As in angiography, the procedure is usually performed while the patient is awake. After introducing a catheter into the coronary vessel via sheaths in the groin or arm, contrast is injected to visualize the vessel to be treated.
Once the appropriate position is determined, a thin guidewire is advanced through the catheter to cross the stenotic segment. A balloon is then delivered over the wire and inflated in a controlled manner at the site of narrowing. As the balloon expands for a certain period, it attempts to relieve the stenosis by tearing or compressing the plaques causing the narrowing against the vessel wall. After deflating the balloon, it is withdrawn into the catheter over the wire to reassess the vessel. In most cases, there is a marked improvement in blood flow following balloon angioplasty. However, in some patients, due to tears or irregularities in the vessel wall, a stent may be required immediately or in the long term to prevent abrupt closure or recurrent narrowing.
Interventional Radiology / Interventional Neuroradiology
Prof. Dr. Özgür KILIÇKESMEZ
Stent placement is similar to balloon angioplasty. An undeployed stent expands and locks into the vessel wall when the balloon is inflated at the stenotic segment. Once the narrowing is relieved, the procedure is concluded. Stents, along with balloons, are the most commonly used devices for opening occluded arteries or veins. They generally provide better early luminal patency compared to balloons but, unlike balloons, they remain in the body. Stents can stay in the body indefinitely without causing problems. The success rate of balloon and stent procedures ranges from 65% to 99%. Within six months, 20–30% of patients who receive a stent may develop in-stent restenosis. This rate is lower with drug-eluting stents.
Prof. Dr. Özgür Kılıçkesmez graduated from Cerrahpaşa Medical Faculty in 1997. He completed his specialization at Istanbul Education and Research Hospital. He received training in interventional radiology and oncology in London. He founded the interventional radiology department at Istanbul Çam and Sakura City Hospital and became a professor in 2020. He holds many international awards and certificates, has over 150 scientific publications, and has been cited more than 1500 times. He is currently working at Medicana Ataköy Hospital.
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