Here’s a study raising fundamental questions about stents—the most frequently used means to open blocked arteries and relieve chest pain. According to researchers at Imperial College in London, while stents (tiny wire mesh tubes) are very effective in opening coronary blockages and thus saving patients from a heart attack, they may not relieve chest pain as previously thought. The study demonstrated that heart patients who thought they had received a stent, but didn’t, said they felt no chest pain post procedure, as did participants who had actually received a stent. While suggesting that pain relief may be in the mind—and not owing to a stent—others point out that atherosclerosis affects many blood vessels and stenting only the largest blockage doesn’t result in significant pain relief as the other blockages remain. The findings of the study were published in medical journal Lancet.

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Featured in Harmony — Celebrate Age Magazine
February 2018