Stents - how many??
My father turned 80 last month and has 6 stents in his heart currently. His first very mild heart attack occurred in 2010 and since then over the years, he's had further mild episodes where he had to have these other stents put in. He has also type 2 diabetes since around 2000 and although this has been very controlled and not that severe, this no doubt led to the heart problems he has now.
Over the past few years he's been well and no issues but then this week he was admitted with some intermittent chest pain. He's going to have an angiogram in the next day or so to see what's going on.
I guess my question is, what options does my father have at this stage now because I've heard it's risky to keep having stents put in esp past 80? And also heart surgery isn't a viable option apparently either at his age...? I've read conflicting opinions online.
Hello I never had stents but I have a heart transplant and I'm also a type 2 diabetic. I've learn to trust my doctors over the years and I feel they will be able to tell you what's best for your dad after the angiogram is done. One day at a time is always best.
Kimberly (Heart-failure.net Team)
Nomad123
Thank you for sharing about your father. In my personal experience, I had 5 stents placed in my original heart in one day. After the procedure, I was told by my cardiologist that they couldn’t place any more stents in my heart due to the location that the stents were needed in. It was too dangerous. In some cases this may happen, however, I’m not sure as to how many stents a person can have. Age is sometimes a factor as well. I hope your father is doing well. Leslie (Community Moderator)
