Is a stent the same as a bypass?

Both stents and bypass are used to treat heart disease, but they vary in treatment and application.

A stent is a minimally invasive intervention that places a stent through a catheter into a coronary artery to open up a narrow blood vessel and keep the blood flowing. It is suitable for patients with mild coronary artery stenosis or blockage that do not require thoracotomy. Bypass surgery is a surgical procedure that allows other blood vessels in the body to be transplanted into the coronary artery of the heart to bypass the stenosis or blockage and keep the blood flowing. For patients with severe coronary artery disease requiring thoracotomy.

In general, cardiac stents and bypass are effective methods for treating heart disease. The specific choice of method needs to be decided according to the specific conditions of the patient and the doctor's advice.