Blocked arteries, also known as atherosclerosis, is a condition in which fatty cholesterol can obstruct the blood vessels, so that not enough blood can reach vital parts of the body. According to the Mayo Clinic, symptoms of blocked arteries include chest pain if the heart's blood vessels are obstructed; and numbness or tingling of the legs if the blood vessels in the brain are blocked. Leg pain occurs when vessels in the leg are blocked. Treatments are available for blocked arteries.
Medications
Various medications can be used to decrease the symptoms of blocked arteries. Such medications include cholesterol medications, including statins or fibrates, antiplatelet medications, anticoagulant medications and blood pressure medications.
According to the Mayo Clinic, medications belonging to the group of drugs called statins or fibrates can work to decrease low density lipoprotein (LDL) and increase high density lipoprotein (HDL). LDL refers to "bad" cholesterol while HDL refers to "good cholesterol." Bad cholesterol is the type of cholesterol that obstructs vessels while good cholesterol works to reverse the effects of bad cholesterol.
Anti-platelet medications like aspirin prevent the platelets from obstructing the blood vessels while anticoagulant medications, such as warfarin, thin the blood to also prevent blood clot formation.
Beta-blocker medications, such as metoprolol, and calcium channel blockers, such as lisinopril, can reduce blood vessel obstruction as it treats high blood pressure and prevents the blood vessels from constricting.
Angioplasty
Angioplasty is a specific surgical procedure used to unblock the obstructed arteries of the heart. According to MedlinePlus, angioplasty is used to treat people who have a blockage in one or more heart vessels (coronary arteries) as this can lead to a heart attack. This procedure is also performed on people who are experiencing or just had a heart attack.
Specifically, a blood thinner medication will be given prior to the procedure to prevent any blood clots from forming. Then, a small cut will be made in the groin. A thin tube (catheter) will be woven up into the arteries of the heart. Dye will be injected into the catheter and through xray technology, a doctor will be able to determine where the blocked artery is located. A guide wire will be introduced into the catheter once the location of the blockage is identified. The guide wire contains a balloon at its tip that will be inflated to open up the blocked blood vessel. A durable wire tube can then be placed along that blood vessel region to keep it open.
MedlinePlus says that risks for this procedure include bleeding, an allergic reaction to the dye, an irregular heartbeat, a stroke, damage to the blood vessel or clotting where the catheter was inserted.
Coronary Bypass Surgery
Coronary bypass surgery is another way to treat blocked heart blood vessels. In this procedure, a huge incision is made length-wise across the chest. The heart is connected to a heart-lung-blood machine. The surgeon takes a piece of blood vessel from either the leg vein (sapheneous vein) or a blood vessel in the breast and creates a bypass route around the heart's blocked region. This is much like the detour taken when there is too much traffic.
The Mayo Clinic says that risk factors for coronary bypass surgery include bleeding, kidney failure, bleeding, memory loss, heart rhythm abnormalities and a stroke.
