Recovery from LAD stent

Initially two years ago (??) they started me at 10 mg. Within months, they lowered it to five.

8-16-26. Hello all. I am a 71 year old, overweight male and had a triple bypass nine years ago. Since then I was diagnosed with mild COPD and sleep apnea, so use a CPAP machine. When I got my triple I asked the doctor how long these things last and he said about ten years. I asked how do you know and he said we monitor you. A year or so ago out of the blue, my right foot and ankle started to swell. I retired in February and decided I should get myself checked out now that I had the time. The swelling was really the catalyst, but I embellished some symptoms to pressure my cardiologist to run some tests because he was reluctant to do so. First a sonogram. That detected some abnormalities. Then a CT scan. That really showed some serious issues. Then, three weeks ago, a cardiac catherization procedure. That surgeon said my blockages were too complex and rescheduled me for four days ago with another surgeon. One of my bypasses had collapsed and I had three blockages; two at 80% and one in my LAD (the widow maker) at 90%. I was in and out in one day. The surgeon put me on a very strong blood thinner called Effien and a baby aspirin plus the meds I had been on: Atvorstatin and Losartin. Took me off of Plavix and replaced with the Effien.
Here it is, three full days later and I feel close to 100%. 😎. The first day I was wobbly and tired but I feel good now. I had a bout of severe cramping and diarrhea after each procedure. My Doctor says it’s unrelated. I have had IBS -D all my life, but had not had any issues for two months prior. I think the diarrhea must be a reaction to the contrast die or something as I had it after each procedure. Very unpleasant and completely flushed my bowels over a period of several hours. Then it passed and I was fine.
Has anybody else experienced this? It seems to be a one and done.
I feel lucky to be alive and I’m looking forward to doing the rehab and moving on with my life.
It’s really quite amazing how routine the procedure has become. In and out the same day. Thank God for the skill of my surgeon and the advanced technology we have today.
My surgeon told me the stents were made out of cobalt and should last at least thirty years. So I am circling my calendar on my 100th birthday to remind me to have them checked out. 😉.
Other than experiencing severe bruising on my arms and hands and feeling very mildly dizzy from the Effrien combined with the baby aspirin, I feel fine. I walked maybe a half mile this evening and did fine, other than having to deal with the heat here in Dallas. I’m still overweight and out of shape but I will be working on that soon and look forward to at least another ten years of healthy living 🙂❤️‍🩹.

Female, 74 years old, and two years ago I had a stent put in my main heart artery LAD. The artery was 70% blocked. I also learned I had scar tissue in the heart from a silent heart attack I did not know I had experienced sometime in the past which caused a tiny apical aneurysm in my left ventricle. Scar tissue, from what I have learned, can trigger disturbances with the heart rhythm which is what made me go to the hospital where the 70% block artery was discovered and the stent put in. It was a very frightening time. I was scared of food and lost almost 40 lbs so I am closer to what I should weigh for my height now. (I am also prediabetic, my eating habits have changed lots.) So I was on a baby aspirin for a year along with plavix, 75 mg, which I will be on forever to prevent a blood clot in the heart aneurysm. (Best to stay on a blood thinner for 2 years if you only have a stent) 5mg a day of Rosuvastatin to lower cholesterol, and 12.5 mg of metoprolol ER a day to lower blood pressure and slow the heart beat to keep the aneurysm from expanding. Blood pressure now is low and am tired lots. Not as scared as I was but just tired. If I didn't have that aneurysm I'm pretty sure I would be off of the metoprolol ER and Plavix. Losing weight I read usually lowers blood pressure. Read everything you can about everything because not everything is always told to you so you need to learn alot yourself is what i have found out. And ask if there is a cardiac rehab place you can go to that your insurance will pay for. It is OK to be scared and is OK to question. Give yourself permission on both these things, OK? I wish you the best.

Male, 59, LAD stent, LCX stent and another. Felt pretty normal 2 weeks after procedure. Meds, 40mg Rosuvastatin, 25mg Metoprolol, 25mg Losarton, 10mg Zetia, just started Rapatha, low dose aspirin and Prasugrel (switched from Plavix after my second stent. Sorry you are having issues.

@vjs003 Thanks for the reply. Although I went through something similar, actually much more invasive and dangerous, nine years ago, for some reason, this go around is hitting me like a ton of bricks. Last time, even though I had complications with the triple and actually had to be revived in bed during recovery, I strangely felt like I was going to be just fine. I am single and spent 6 weeks in a nursing rehab center because they did not want me to go home. That probably helped a lot. I didn't have to worry about a thing. They feed me and I exercised daily with the PT team. I am in a relationship, but now I am home alone and realizing that I am 71 and almost bit the dust. Sigh. I'll get over it, but laying around doing basically nothing while I recuperate isn't helping. But for the moment, I can't drive or lift anything. Pretty limiting. But that changes soon, so I will feel better I am sure.

@ordiver1 Thanks for replying. How are you doing on the Prasugrel (Effien)?. They switched me off Clopridigel (Plavix) and added baby aspirin. I have naturally low blood pressure (and cholesterol for that matter, go figure), and the blood thinners make me dizzy. They also contribute to getting terribly large and ugly bruises on my hands and arms. But I guess I come by that naturally as my mother had the same. Thin skin. I can brush up against a door frame and get a bruise. I researched Effien, and it evidently is very strong stuff and they won't keep you on it for longer than 6 months nor would they even prescribe it to you if you're over 75. Have you had any noticable side effects? Today is my 4th day out and I feel remarkably good. I can start driving today too! Thank God!

@smotu Glad you are doing well. I did not realize that danelle9354 had written what she wrote back in 2024. Guess we both have learned from first hand experience more than we really wanted to know about how a heart works. Sounds like you have been very fortunate to have had the best of doctors helping you. May good health continue to be with you, and me, and all who read this, yes.

@smotu, welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. You’ve already had quite a journey, from your bypass nine years ago to finding out that one graft had collapsed and you had several significant blockages. I’m glad you’re feeling so well physically just a few days after the procedure.

What really caught my attention, though, was what you said in your follow-up, that this time it is “hitting me like a ton of bricks.” It sounds like your recovery nine years ago was very different. You had people around you for six weeks, meals taken care of, and PT every day. This time you’re home alone with time to think about what happened while also being temporarily limited in what you can do. That sounds like quite an adjustment.

You mentioned looking forward to cardiac rehab. Do you know when you’ll be able to start? And besides getting back into better physical shape, what are you most hoping rehab will help you regain — strength, confidence, getting back to your normal routine, or something else?

I’m also glad you asked others about their experiences with prasugrel (Effient), bruising and dizziness. Those are good things to keep your cardiology team informed about, particularly if the dizziness or bruising changes or concerns you.

And I smiled at your 100th-birthday reminder. 🙂 I hope you’ll keep us posted as you recover and get started with cardiac rehab.

@vjs003 Did you energy level improve after the stent?

@zacklucy No,but the angina I was noticing when I learned I had a 70% blockage went away, and also the fear went away my heart would suffer more damage by not getting the oxygen it needed. My energy level was the same before and after the stent. Just the metoprolol has the side effect of being tired.