Coronary artery disease: stent angioplasty or bypass

Myocardial ischaemia from coronary artery disease is treated percutaneously with angioplasty and a drug-eluting stent, or surgically with coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). These are not equivalent options: coronary anatomy and comorbidities decide.

Angioplasty is ideal for one or two vessel lesions, is performed via radial access and allows discharge within about 24 hours with very fast recovery. It requires dual antiplatelet therapy for months and carries a risk of restenosis or stent thrombosis, making strict adherence essential.

Bypass is superior for long-term infarction prevention in multivessel disease, ventricular dysfunction or severe diabetes, because it creates durable physiological detours, especially with arterial grafts. In exchange it often involves cardiopulmonary bypass, sternotomy and a four to six week recovery with supervised cardiac rehabilitation.

India hosts the world's highest-volume cardiovascular bypass surgeons and offers costs up to 80% below the United States. Malaysia and Thailand have internationally certified world-class cardiac institutes. The range is EUR 4,000 to 8,000, with ten to twenty-one day stays before flying.

At medviajes we compare accredited hospitals and their annual volume, verify coronary ICU availability and organise travel, a companion and rehabilitation. The choice between stent and bypass must be made by a qualified cardiology team after angiography.