Drug-eluting stents; Urinary or ureteral stents

Last updated: February 8, 2026Reviewed date: February 8, 2026Reading time: 2 min read

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Article Summary

Drug-eluting stents; Urinary or ureteral stents; Coronary stents A stent is a tiny tube placed into a hollow structure in your body. This structure can be an artery, a blood vessel, or something such as the tube that carries urine (ureter). The stent holds the structure open. Description When a stent is placed into the body, the procedure is called stenting. There are different kinds of...

Key Takeaways

This article explains Description in simple medical language.
This article explains Why the Procedure Is Performed in simple medical language.
This article explains Risks in simple medical language.

Before reading

RX Patient Tools

Use these quick guides before reading the article, or return to them when you need help preparing questions for a doctor.

Start here Choose the right pathway for symptoms, reports, medicines, or urgent warning signs. Disease article roadmap Read this topic step by step: meaning, symptoms, warning signs, diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and follow-up. Treatment planner Prepare questions about treatment choices, benefits, risks, side effects, and follow-up. Family & caregiver guide Organize symptoms, reports, medicines, questions, and follow-up safely. Nutrition & diet guide Prepare food, hydration, supplement, and medicine-timing questions safely. Prevention guide Organize risk factors, protective habits, screening, and warning signs. Recovery guide Prepare a safe plan for activity, rehabilitation, warning signs, and follow-up.

Educational health guideWritten for patient understanding and clinical awareness.

Reviewed content workflowUse writer and reviewer profiles for stronger trust.

Emergency safety firstUrgent warning signs are highlighted below.

Definition

Drug-eluting stents; Urinary or ureteral stents; Coronary stents

A stent is a tiny tube placed into a hollow structure in your body. This structure can be an artery, a blood vessel, or something such as the tube that carries urine (ureter). The stent holds the structure open.

Description

When a stent is placed into the body, the procedure is called stenting. There are different kinds of stents. Most are made of a metal or plastic mesh-like material. However, stent-grafts are made of fabric. They are used in larger arteries.

A coronary artery stent is a small, self-expanding, metal mesh tube. It is placed inside a coronary artery after balloon angioplasty. This stent prevents the artery from re-closing.

A drug-eluting stent is coated with a medicine. This medicine helps further prevent the arteries from re-closing. Like other coronary artery stents, it is left permanently in the artery.

Why the Procedure Is Performed

Most of the time, stents are used when arteries become narrow or blocked.

Stents are commonly used to treat the following conditions that result from blocked or damaged blood vessels:

Coronary heart disease (CHD) (angioplasty and stent placement – heart)
Peripheral artery disease (angioplasty and stent replacement – peripheral arteries)
Renal artery stenosis
Abdominal aortic aneurysm (aortic aneurysm repair – endovascular)
Carotid artery disease (carotid artery surgery)

Other reasons to use stents include:

Keeping open a blocked or damaged ureter (percutaneous urinary procedures)
Treating aneurysms , including thoracic aortic aneurysms
Keeping bile flowing in blocked bile ducts (biliary stricture)
Helping you breathe if you have a blockage in the airways

Risks

References

Teirstein PS, Lytle BW. Interventional and surgical treatment of coronary artery disease. In: Goldman L, Schafer AI, eds. Goldman’s Cecil Medicine . 25th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier Saunders; 2016:chap 74.

White CJ. Atherosclerotic peripheral arterial disease. In: Goldman L, Schafer AI, eds. Goldman’s Cecil Medicine . 25th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier Saunders; 2016:chap 79.

Zeidel ML. Obstructive uropathy. In: Goldman L, Schafer AI, eds. Goldman’s Cecil Medicine . 25th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier Saunders; 2016:chap 123.

Which doctor may help?

General physician, urologist, nephrologist, or gynecologist depending on symptoms.

What to tell the doctor

Write burning, frequency, fever, flank pain, blood in urine, pregnancy, diabetes, and previous UTI history.

Questions to ask

Is this UTI, stone, prostate problem, diabetes-related, or another cause?
Do I need urine culture before antibiotics?

Tests to discuss

Urine routine/microscopy
Urine culture for recurrent/severe infection or treatment failure
Blood sugar and kidney function when indicated
Ultrasound if stone/obstruction/recurrent symptoms

Avoid these mistakes

Avoid self-starting antibiotics; wrong antibiotic can cause resistance.
Seek urgent care for fever with flank pain, pregnancy, vomiting, confusion, or inability to pass urine.

Medicine safety and first-aid guide

This section is for patient education only. It does not replace a doctor, pharmacist, or emergency care.

Safe first steps

Rest, drink safe water, and observe symptoms carefully.
Keep a written note of symptoms, duration, temperature, medicines already taken, and allergy history.
Seek medical care quickly if symptoms are severe, worsening, or unusual for the patient.

OTC medicine safety

For mild pain or fever, ask a registered pharmacist or doctor before using common over-the-counter pain/fever medicines.
Do not combine multiple pain medicines without advice, especially if you have kidney disease, liver disease, stomach ulcer, asthma, pregnancy, or take blood thinners.
Do not give adult medicines to children unless a qualified clinician advises it.

Avoid these mistakes

Do not start antibiotics without a proper medical decision.
Do not use steroid tablets or injections casually for quick relief.
Do not delay emergency care because of home remedies.

Get urgent help if

Severe symptoms, confusion, fainting, breathing difficulty, chest pain, severe dehydration, or sudden weakness need urgent medical care.

Medicine names, dose, and timing must be decided by a qualified clinician or pharmacist after checking age, pregnancy, allergy, other diseases, and current medicines.

For rural patients and family caregivers

Patient health record and symptom diary

Write your symptoms, medicines already taken, test results, and questions before visiting a doctor. This note stays on your device unless you print or copy it.

Doctor to discuss: Doctor / qualified healthcare provider

Tests to discuss with doctor

Basic vital signs: temperature, pulse, blood pressure, oxygen level if needed
Relevant blood, urine, imaging, or specialist tests only after clinical assessment

Questions to ask

What is the most likely cause of my symptoms?
Which warning signs mean I should go to emergency care?
Which tests are really needed now?
Which medicines are safe for my age, pregnancy status, allergy, kidney/liver/stomach condition, and current medicines?

Emergency warning signs such as chest pain, severe breathing difficulty, sudden weakness, confusion, severe dehydration, major injury, or loss of bladder/bowel control need urgent medical care. Do not wait for online information.

Go to emergency care if you notice:

Severe or rapidly worsening symptoms
Breathing difficulty, chest pain, fainting, confusion, severe weakness, major injury, or severe dehydration

Doctor / service to discuss: Qualified healthcare provider; specialist depends on symptoms and examination.

Step 1
Check danger signs first

If danger signs are present, seek emergency care and do not wait for online information.
Step 2
Record the symptom story

Write when symptoms started, severity, medicines already taken, allergies, pregnancy status, and test results.
Step 3
Visit a qualified clinician

A doctor, nurse, or qualified healthcare provider can examine you and decide which tests or treatment are needed.
Step 4
Do only useful tests

Do tests after clinical assessment. Avoid unnecessary tests, random antibiotics, or repeated medicines without diagnosis.
Step 5
Follow up and return early if worse

If symptoms worsen, new warning signs appear, or treatment is not helping, return for review quickly.

Rural patient practical tips

Take a written symptom diary and all previous prescriptions/test reports.
Do not hide medicines already taken, even herbal or over-the-counter medicines.
Ask which warning signs mean urgent referral to hospital.

This roadmap is for education. A real diagnosis and treatment plan requires history, examination, and clinical judgment.

Internal learning pathway

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