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Tallahassee Memorial Hospital Becomes First In Florida To Offer Dissolving Heart Stent

The device, developed and manufactured by Abbott Labs, is the first fully dissolving heart stent approved by the FDA.
Abbot Labs
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Heart Stent

Tallahassee Memorial Hospital is the first in the nation to offer a dissolving heart stent. A new technology hospital officials say could reduce long term complications. A stint is a tiny wire is inserted into a clogged artery. It inflates, —smacking the blockage against the walls of the artery and letting blood through. But once the blockage dissolves, that little piece of wire remains, and it could cause inflammation or hinder future heart surgeries, such as bypasses. The dissolving heart stint goes away completely after two or three years, and could reduce the risk of future blockages.

Tallahassee Memorial Hospital was a center for testing of the dissolving heart stint—and the device was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug administration just last week.

TMH is one of just 11 facilities in the U.S. to offer the new device to patients.

Here's how it works:

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Lynn Hatter is a Florida A&M University and Florida State University graduate with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and a master's in Professional Communication. Lynn has been with WFSU since 2007 with education and health care issues as her key coverage areas.  She has worked with several organizations, including Kaiser Health News.  Lynn has also partnered with USC-Annenberg's Center for Child Wellbeing on the nationally acclaimed series "Committed," which explored the prevalence of involuntary commitment use on children.
She serves on the board of RTDNA and the United Way of the Big Bend, with previous service on the board of the First Amendment Foundation of Florida.

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