Patient experiences of living with coronary stent

Cardiovascular disease is among the most important disorders in the developed world and the main cause of death and disability in all countries considered. Using coronary stent in cardiovascular patients, as an effective treatment, has greatly reduced the requirement for cardiac surgery. The study was carried out to explore lived experiences of patients living with coronary stents.The qualitative phenomenological study was performed to explore lived experiences of patient with coronary stent. The participants (11 patients) were selected purposively. Data were collected through individual semistructured in-depth interviews. The interviews were analyzed according to Colaizzi's seven-stage method. Authenticity is demonstrated using Lincoln and Guba's 4 criteria. The mean age of participant was 49.6 ± 11 years. The researcher obtained as many as 577 codes from patients' statements, and by merging or removing duplicated codes, they were decreased to 217 codes. The analysis of data collected on the cardiovascular patients living with stents showed some basic issues such as concern about future and social anxiety, which constitute the basic theme of anxiety. Basic issues such as lack of knowledge and supporting needs led to the major theme of feeling of necessity, and major issues such as body deformation and lifestyle change resulted in major theme of change. In conclusion, the result showed that an important step to fixing the problems is reducing concerns, increasing the level of awareness, and satisfying the needs (physical and mental). For improving patient's health, the rehab and care programs may modify patients' problems.