Angioplasty

• Balloon surgery, or angioplasty, helps open clogged blood vessels in the heart. A small balloon is inserted into the coronary artery and inflated when it reaches the blocked area. Opening and closing the balloon several times pushes the debris against the vessel wall and opens the artery. This technique may be used with a laser that vaporizes the plaque causing the blockage.
  
  

Atherectomy

• An atherectomy is very similar to angioplasty. The catheter that is inserted in this procedure does not have a balloon attached; it has a rotating shaver instead. This shaver rotates to chip away the plaque that has adhered to the artery.
  
  

Stent Insertion

• After angioplasty, cardiac stents are sometimes inserted. These are tiny, stainless steel, web-like structures that hold the artery open after the balloon is removed. According to the American Heart Association, about 70 percent of angioplasty procedures include stent insertion. The artery lining grows over the metal stent, covering it within a few weeks.
  
  

Coronary Bypass

• Coronary bypass surgery involves detouring the blood vessels around a blockage. A blood vessel is removed from the patient's leg or chest for this procedure. One end of this vessel is attached to the large artery of the heart, the aorta. The other end is attached to the coronary artery at a point below the blockage. This creates a new route for blood to flow.
  
  

Minimally Invasive Heart Surgery

• Minimally invasive heart surgery is used as an alternative to standard coronary bypass surgery. Ports, or small incisions, are made and surgical instruments are passed through these ports to perform the procedure, while the surgeon views the activity on a monitor. Blood vessels from the chest or leg are attached to the heart, as in bypass surgery, to improve the blood supply to the heart.
  
  

Transmyocardial Laser Revascularization

• Transmyocardial laser revascularization (TMR) is performed on people who are not good candidates for angioplasty or bypass surgery, but are having severe chest pain. In this procedure, a laser is used to drill a series of holes into the heart wall. Each hole is tiny, about 1 mm in size. The outer portion heals almost immediately, but the inner channel that was created remains. This allows blood to reach the heart muscle and also stimulates new blood vessels to grow. Results of this procedure are not usually seen for two weeks to six months.