According to reports, former India captain and current BCCI president Sourav Ganguly was hospitalised after complaining of chest pain on Saturday, 2 January.

He successfully underwent an angioplasty at Woodlands hospital in Kolkata and is in a stable condition. The hospital confirmed that he is conscious and his pulse and blood pressure are good, reported NDTV.

“Sourav Ganguly has undergone angioplasty. He is stable now. He will be monitored for 24 hours. He is completely conscious. There are two blockages in his heart for which he will be treated. As of now he is stable, we will have a meeting on Monday and then we will decide what needs to be done further, priority is to let him settle down after heart attack. He is risk-free and he is talking as well,” news agency ANI reported quoting Dr Aftab Khan of the hospital.

The 48-year-old complained of chest pain following a workout session on Friday evening and family members took him to the hospital this afternoon when the problem recurred.

West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee had earlier tweeted,

"Sourav Ganguly suffered from chest discomfort while doing treadmill at his home gym. He had family history of IHD OE Ischemic heart disease. When he came to the hospital at 1 pm, his pulse was 70/min, BP 130/80 mm of Hg and other clinical parameters were within normal limits. His ECG showed hyper acute ST segment elevation in inferior leads and lateral leads," said the medical bulletin of Woodlands Hospital, reported ANI.

What is an Angioplasty?

Often what leads to a heart attack is a coronary artery disease where the arteries in your heart become narrowed or blocked due to a build up of cholesterol or plaque, according to Medline Plus.

This means less blood can flow through them and therefore the heart muscle doesn't get enough oxygen. Often this leads to chest pain (angina) or a heart attack.

“The doctor threads a thin tube through a blood vessel in the arm or groin up to the involved site in the artery. The tube has a tiny balloon on the end. When the tube is in place, the doctor inflates the balloon to push the plaque outward against the wall of the artery. This widens the artery and restores blood flow,” explains Medline Plus.

Indians are predisposed to coronary artery disease. Even when we are very particular about our exercise and well-being, we don’t necessarily know what is happening in the heart.

Angioplasty can be used to reduce chest pain and to minimise damage to heart muscles that may be caused from a heart attack.