Sounds like chest pain after stent placement is a common thing. I had a heart attack at 35 due to an abnormally small LAD. When a stent was placed in the LAD (the end of the LAD) my LAD tore. I ended up with four drug eluting stents. I had chest pains after the stent placement as well. Unfortunately, I also had restenosis. I ended up having six heart caths and six stents in the end. This all took place in 2004. My last heart cath was October 2004. I continue to have chest pain when under stress but not necessarily when I'm exercising. I also have the mid-back pain. I take IMDUR, Toporol,Lotrel, Lipitor, Asprin and Plavix.
I also had drug eluted stent in small caliber LAD 23 months ago. After the stent I had some chest pain for about 4 months which eventually went away(no chest pain prior to procedure). They could not explain it but had had patients who had similar complaints. Despite recent normal stress test, I had cardiac cath at 20 months for unexplained shortness of breath and it was good with stent wide open with no restenosis. Therefore, the initial chest pain may be part of healing process (who knows) . Good luck to you.
My shortness of breath has improved after going off low dose statin-hope you don't have problem with statins since they are beneficial but do have side effects which I feel are under reported.
Hi,
For what it's worth, I had the more extensive angiogram mentioned by the CCF doc to check for microvascular disease. The test provoked the same chest pain I had been experiencing for months. Bottom line, my coronary arteries constrict under pressure -- no focal coronary spasm -- but a global narrowing under stress like exertion. "Endothelial dysfunction" is a marker for heart disease.
Prior to this highly specialized test, I had an ergonovine angiogram to check for coronary spasm, plus a stress test. All tests were normal, i.e., no EKG changes. Apparently, the more classic tests to look for large macrovascular disease are not sensitive enough to diagnose disease of the smaller vessels.
My prognosis is good, even though I experience chest pain. I'm under the care of one of the leading cardiovascular researchers for microvascular disease. I take an ACE-inhibitor, statin and Eplerenone, (a new diuretic) which have cut my symptoms in half and help protect me from "events," i.e., heart attacks, heart failure, etc. I also exercise and eat a heart-healthy diet.
Microvascular disease isn't always benign, so I hope you're taking the necessary interventions.
Best,
C
Hi hburns,
It is encouraging that the stress test is negative. One possible reason for the pain is microvascular disease. Macrovascular vessels are the coronary arteries we see on the angiogram, microvascular vessels cannot be visualized on an angiogram and requires some more sophisticated tests during your angiogram. It is hard to tell why this is happening after the stent but I must admit I've seen this once or twice before.
The negative stress test shows that you have a good prognosis. Increasing your beta blocker may help improve your symptoms.
Good luck. I hope this helps.