Heart Health

From the wrist to the heart: A safer route for angioplasty?

By , Executive Editor, Harvard Heart Letter
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In the United States, at least half of all artery-opening procedures in the heart now start at the wrist instead of the top of the leg.

To open a narrowed or blocked artery in the heart, a doctor’s first step is to carefully maneuver a slender tube (catheter) through a major blood vessel up to the heart. Traditionally, that vessel has been the femoral artery, the large vessel at the top of the thigh. But increasingly, cardiologists are starting at the radial artery in the wrist instead (see illustration).

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About the Author

photo of Julie Corliss

Julie Corliss, Executive Editor, Harvard Heart Letter

Julie Corliss is the executive editor of the Harvard Heart Letter. Before working at Harvard, she was a medical writer and editor at HealthNews, a consumer newsletter affiliated with The New England Journal of Medicine. She … See Full Bio
View all posts by Julie Corliss
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