God's Own Country lives on stents; Kerala 3rd in India for cardiac implants
Kerala is the third largest user of cardiac stents in the UK, implanting around 10,000 monthly, with drug-eluting stents being most common.
Kerala is the third largest user of cardiac stents in the UK, implanting around 10,000 monthly, with drug-eluting stents being most common.
Kerala is the third largest user of cardiac stents in the UK, implanting around 10,000 monthly, with drug-eluting stents being most common.
Kerala ranks third among the country’s biggest users of cardiac stents, after Maharashtra and Karnataka, respectively. On average, around 10,000 stents are implanted in patients in the state here every month.
According to data available with the National Interventional Council (NIC), Kerala used 1,16,672 stents last year, accounting for 10.34% of the 11.28 lakh stents used across the country. The state’s monthly average works out to 9,722 stents.
The figures are based on annual data from 1,130 catheterization laboratories (cath labs) across the country. The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board has records of 1,994 cath labs, but the NIC has annual data from only 1,130. The actual number of stents used could be significantly higher as several private hospitals do not disclose their annual figures and some government hospitals do not maintain or submit complete data.
Across the 1,130 cath labs, 11,28,358 stents were used last year for 7,92,120 patients. Stent distributors, meanwhile, put the number of cath labs in Kerala at 220 and estimate monthly stent use at 16,203.
Stent cost only part of the bill
- A drug-eluting stent, used in 99.81% of cases, costs up to ₹39,186.03. The drug coating helps prevent complications from minor injuries that may occur to blood vessel walls during the procedure.
- A bare-metal stent costs a maximum of ₹10,762.15.
- But the stent is not the only expense. There is no prescribed maximum price for the balloons and guidewires used during implantation. A balloon costs ₹3,000 to ₹7,000, while a guidewire costs ₹4,000 to ₹16,000.
Cutting costs through reuse
- To cut procedure costs, balloons and guidewires are sterilised and reused at least twice, though international standards recommend single use.
- A patient may need up to three stents. For those who cannot undergo bypass surgery, doctors may implant as many as four.
- Stents come in sizes ranging from 8mm to 48mm. Since every cath lab may not stock stents of all sizes, two stents are sometimes joined together when a single stent of the required size is unavailable.