How long do you stay in the hospital after having a stent put in?
Mia Kelly
Published Jan 15, 2026
Going home. A coronary angioplasty often involves an overnight stay in hospital, but many people can go home on the same day if the procedure is straightforward. After the operation, you won't be able to drive for 1 week, so you'll need to arrange for someone to drive you home from hospital.
How long after stents can you go home?
Recovery from angioplasty and stenting is typically brief. Discharge from the hospital is usually 12 to 24 hours after the catheter is removed. Many patients are able to return to work within a few days to a week after a procedure.
Is having stents put in a serious operation?
Other arteries can also narrow in the future, which would be treated with further stents. Carotid stenting is a serious procedure requiring hospital admission. However, it is a commonly performed and relatively safe procedure done by a qualified doctor.
How long are you hospitalized after having a stent put in?
What should you expect? The procedure may take place right after the arteriogram, which is used to find the blockage, or it may occur the next day. You may need to stay in the hospital two or three days.
What to expect after having a stent put in?
You generally should be able to return to work or your normal routine the week after angioplasty. When you return home, drink plenty of fluids to help flush your body of the contrast dye. Avoid strenuous exercise and lifting heavy objects for at least a day afterward.
16 related questions foundDo and don'ts after stent?
Don't lift heavy objects. Avoid strenuous exercise. Avoid sexual activity for a week. Wait at least a week before swimming or bathing.
Will I have more energy after a stent?
Angioplasty widens or opens your narrowed or blocked arteries so that your blood can flow through your body normally. Your symptoms of heart disease, including trouble breathing and chest pain, will improve and you should have more energy.
How long does stent surgery take?
The procedure varies, but in most cases it takes between 30 and 60 minutes to complete.
How do you sleep after a heart stent?
Your doctor will recommend sleeping on your back, which allows your head, neck, and spine to be aligned properly, thereby reducing the pressure of the chest and heart. However, if it becomes a little difficult to get in or out of the bed, make sure that you have enough support (pillows) for an easier transition.
How much blockage requires a stent?
“Patients typically develop symptoms when an artery becomes narrowed by a blockage of 70 percent or more,” says Menees. “Most times, these can be treated relatively easily with stents. However, with a CTO, the artery is 100 percent blocked and so placing a stent can be quite challenging.”
Can you live a normal life with a stent?
It's important to remember that you can live a full and active life with a coronary stent. You can find some general guidelines about returning to working, resuming your everyday activities and making some heart-healthy lifestyle changes below.
What to avoid after having a stent?
In most cases, you'll be advised to avoid heavy lifting and strenuous activities for about a week, or until the wound has healed.
- Driving. You shouldn't drive a car for a week after having a coronary angioplasty. ...
- Work. ...
- Sex.
Does getting a stent require hospitalization?
Overview. Stenting is a minimally invasive procedure. Some people are able to leave the hospital soon after the stenting procedure. Most people are able to return to work and their normal routines after about a week.
Why do you have to carry a stent card?
Can I travel with a coronary stent? Patients with a stent can feel confident and safe when traveling. It's important to carry your Medical Device ID card when traveling as it will alert medical and security personnel that you have an implanted stent.
What sleeping position helps the heart?
Similarly, sleeping on your left side, specifically, could help the flow of blood to your heart. When your heart pumps blood out to your body, it gets circulated and then flows back to your heart on the right side, Winter explains.
When can you drive after open heart surgery?
Patients can often resume driving about four weeks after surgery. Many variables are involved in this equation, and each case is an individual decision between you and your surgeon.
How do you shower after open heart surgery?
If you have stitches in your chest, during the first two weeks after surgery, shower with your back to the shower spray. It is okay for your incision to get wet, but the shower spray should not directly hit your chest. If you do not have a shower, you may take a quick bath (no longer than 10 minutes).
Are you awake during stent surgery?
Angioplasty and stenting procedures are performed in the catheterization lab (or “cath” lab) of a hospital. You will lie on a table and be mildly sedated to help you relax and take away any pain, but you will remain awake throughout the procedure.
Is stent surgery painful?
During the surgery
They will also numb the area where they insert the catheter. Most people do not feel the catheter threading through the artery. They may, however, feel a bit of pain as the balloon expands and pushes the stent into place.
Can you drink alcohol with stents in your heart?
These results, which support previous animal and human research, strongly suggest that moderate alcohol intake protects against restenosis in patients undergoing angioplasty and stenting.
Can you drive after a stent?
After an angioplasty and stent using the radial artery (wrist) route – you must not drive for 7 days. After an angiogram using the femoral artery (groin) route – please do not drive for 24 hours. After a stent or angioplasty (PCI) using the femoral artery (groin) route – please do not drive for 7 days.
Is a stent outpatient surgery?
Angioplasty with stenting is usually an outpatient procedure. First, a doctor will make a small incision into the area where they want to access an artery. A doctor will then insert a small balloon attached to an end of a thin tube or guide wire into the narrowed artery.
How long do you stay on blood thinners after stents?
It has been common practice for patients who have had a stent placed to clear a blocked artery to take an anti-clotting drug (such as Plavix, Effient, or Brilinta) plus aspirin for 12 months after the procedure. Taking these two medications, called dual anti-platelet therapy, reduces the risk of forming blood clots.
Do heart stents shorten your life?
Summary: While the placement of stents in newly reopened coronary arteries has been shown to reduce the need for repeat angioplasty procedures, researchers from the Duke Clinical Research Institute have found that stents have no impact on mortality over the long term.
Which is better open heart surgery or stents?
Patients with severe coronary artery disease generally fared better with bypass surgery than with stents to open blocked arteries, according to a major new multinational study led by Stanford Medicine investigators.