Angioplasty access point

[ed34]

Hi,  The last time I went in for Angioplasty I was looking forward to having the entry site in my arm rather than thigh. However, upon arrival they said that anyone who has had a bypass, cannot have entry made through the arm. I am very intrigued as to why because the Cardiologist didn't give me an answer, he just kept saying "you can't". Surely if you know the bypass map then there isn't a problem, and don't you go in through the Aorta anyway? then into the coronary arteries? I can't see how your could accidentally go through a bypass vessel, so there must be another reason. The only thing I can think of, is they might assume I've had arteries removed from my arms for grafting, but they could easily see I haven't, there are no scars.

[ed34]

Thank you.
Had Lima to LAD
SVx2 - 1 to LAD and 1 to a Diagonal. Both SV collapsed after 3 months.
Lima is patent, so I assume that I should be able to have angioplasty through the radial artery. Most problems when they occur now seem to be in the LCx and Margin areas.

[CCFHeartMD 15]

Hello. In general, only 7-10% og the left heart cath done in the US are through the radial artery. In the case of previous coronary bypass, it is not an absolute contraindication for radial access. The main issue is that the radial access is usually done through the right arm and from there you cannot access the left mammarian artery (LIMA) that is the most common graft. You did not give information about the type of surgery you had and also is very important to assess the presence of collateral circulation in the arm before using the radial approach.