stent

views updated May 18 2018

stent (stent) n. a tube placed inside a duct or canal to reopen it or keep it open. Stents may be used at operation to aid healing of an anastomosis, for example of a ureter, or they can be placed across an obstruction to maintain an open lumen, for example in obstruction due to tumour in the oesophagus, stomach, bile ducts, colon, or ureter. In an artery after angioplasty stents help to prevent restenosis and are increasingly used in coronary artery disease in place of coronary artery bypass grafting. drug-eluting s. a coronary stent coated with a drug that reduces the risk of restenosis.

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