Stents six weeks ago but angina still happening

[Denva]

Stents six weeks ago but still having angina

[Terri-D]

2 heart attacks, scad and 4 stents 2 years ago, had angina ever since due to heart damage

[Denva in reply to Terri-D]

Oh my gosh. You have had a lot to deal with. 😍

[Hidden]

My understanding is that a stent is fitted where there is a severe blockage, but you may have more minor narrowing in other vessels not severe enough yet to warrant a stent, and therefore still have angina pains. The reality is that some people find a big improvement in angina after stenting, but others may find it makes little to no difference at all.

[Denva in reply to Hidden]

Thank you so much for your reply. It really is just so lovely and so helpful to be able to put a query up on the site and to be given such helpful replies. It is hard not to get a little anxious When you come out of a procedure like stents and yet you still have the same angina problem. It really is reassuring to know that other people have been there too!!

Stay well

[Denva in reply to Denva]

Ps my cardiologist told me that I did have other blockages but they were not ready for stenting. However, he did say, that with the sedation that I was given in the theatre it gives a false reading of the arteries. The sedation relaxes the artery.

[Hidden in reply to Denva]

I haven’t had stents, I actually only have an arrhythmia, but my mum had 4 last year after a long time coming NSTEMI, and as the medically minded individual in the family, I’ve read up quite a bit on it to try and get past her unfortunate desire to ignore/deny medical issues! 🤦‍♂️😬 She’d had undiagnosed, untreated angina for well over a decade, and was told in my mid teens she needed to be referred to cardiology after an ecg carried out as part of a research study revealed there was something abnormal, but she just kept burying her head in the sand. She’s just cleared 12 months since her heart attack, and still gets occasional bouts of angina, but not with the same frequency she did pre MI. I’m sure you know this, but never forget the golden rule of thumb: if you’re experiencing angina pain that doesn’t respond to GTN, treat it as an emergency and seek help.

[hedintheclouds]

Get checked immediately!! I had worse angina after having 2 stents turned out my stents failed and I needed a triple bypass please do not ignore this

[Denva in reply to hedintheclouds]

Thank you so much because it is quite distressing. But I just went to the cardiologist On Tuesday and he Is all about medication. He doesn’t reallY Believe in stents. He said we put stents in and then Other blockages occur. He did talk about the fact that I have cardiac spasms and he’s put me on some new medication for that. But yes I will definitely be going back to him if It continues because it’s very scary.You’ve been through a lot. I do hope you’re feeling better now. Thank you for your answer

[hedintheclouds in reply to Denva]

I had suspected prizmental varient angina after my stents after being throughly investigated at harefield hospital and having an IVUS SCAN (infrared angio) I turned out I needed cabgx3

Insist on an IVUS can you rule out any surgery if it is spasmatic arteries it’s controlled with medication not surgery

Good luck

[Milkfairy Heart Star in reply to hedintheclouds]

Hi hedintheclouds

The BHF website information about how vasospastic angina ( the term now used to describe coronary vasospasms) says that vasospastic angina is diagnosed by a

' coronary angiogram with an injection of Acetylcholine, a chemical that can ‘provoke’ tightening and spasm of the blood vessel during the procedure, thus revealing providing the diagnosis in some patients.'

A Intravascular ultrasound IVUS scan is usually used by Cardiologists to look at the inside of the artery to assess if there are any permanent narrowings that need to be opened up with a stent.

[hedintheclouds in reply to Milkfairy]

Well I am only reporting my own experience for suspected spasmatic arteries and the tests run by harefield hospital to rule it out

[Milkfairy Heart Star in reply to hedintheclouds]

The BHF information was updated recently so is probably more up to date.

My vasospastic angina was diagnosed by a world leading expert into vasospastic angina by an angiogram with acetylcholine.

This is now the recommended test by the European Society of Cardiology.

academic.oup.com/eurheartj/...

Vasospastic angina is poorly understood and recognised and there is sadly only a few Cardiologists who really understand the condition.

I am glad they found the cause of your chest pain and you were able to have the surgery to improve your condition.

[Sunshinebrew]

I had continuing angina after 3 stents to My LAD and have since been diagnosed with microvascular angina and vasospams, which is being treated with medication. I haven't had a specific test for it though but I am sure it's a correct diagnosis.

[Milkfairy Heart Star in reply to Sunshinebrew]

Hi Sunshinebrew

Many patients are given a diagnosis by exclusion of microvascular and or vasospastic angina.

The paper I posted yesterday published by the European society of Cardiology recommends now that it is possible to test for both microvascular dysfunction and vasospastic angina during an angiogram that this should be done.

At present it is guess work for the Cardiologists they are treating the symptoms without knowing the cause of those symptoms.

The treatment for microvascular dysfunction is different to vasospastic angina. In fact beta blockers can increase vasospasms and nitrates tend not to work so well for people with Microvascular dysfunction.

[Denva]

Thank you all for your comments. I so appreciate it. I do feel very disheartened. I went shopping And within five minutes my angina was so bad I had to find a seat somewhere. And I am the opposite of a panicker or drama queen. I had high hopes with the stents plus the medication.

[Milkfairy Heart Star in reply to Denva]

Hi Denva

I suggest you keep a diary of your symptoms and discuss this with your GP and ask for a review by a Cardiologist. The problem is that the knowledge about microvascular and vasospastic angina is limited however it is getting better.

It can take time to find the best drugs to treat Microvascular dysfunction and or vasospastic angina.

The vast majority of patients are able to find a way to live well with stable angina.

[jerry12953]

Milkfairy,

It's always useful to read your posts about MVA so thanks again. Fingers crossed I don't suffer from vasospastic angina and long may that continue!

That new paper you linked to above will hopefully help the medical profession to understand MVA better, not that i understood most of it myself! It seems to affect such a large proportion of those suffering from angina (39%) and it is surprising that it has taken so long for it to be recognised as a separate condition. Hopefully now it is being more widely recognised treatments can be found for it.

[Milkfairy Heart Star in reply to jerry12953]

Hopefully now there is a way for Cardiologists to assess the way the coronary blood vessels are functioning during an angiogram diagnosis and treatment options will improve.