A stent is a small, mesh tube that is placed inside the blockage site via a catheter. The stent’s purpose is to hold the artery open and keep it from closing again. It becomes a permanent part of your artery.

Patients who experience re-narrowing within a previously placed stent may be required to undergo intravascular brachytherapy, which requires application of radiation to the affected part of the artery after the angioplasty or stent insertion.

Intraluminal stents: Small mesh tubes that self-dilate and are used to treat narrow or weak arteries.