View Broadcast
The stent procedure performed on former President Bill Clinton is relatively routine. Stents are tiny wire mesh tubes deployed into the heart to help open blocked arteries in an effort to prevent a heart attack. In most cases, a small incision is made in the patients groin area, and a catheter is then thread into the blocked artery. A tiny balloon is used to clear away the plaque causing the blockage, and the stent is then placed into artery to keep it open.