Interventional Cardiology

Interventional cardiology refers to various non-surgical procedures for treating cardiovascular disease. Interventional cardiologists use catheters (thin, flexible tubes) to get inside blood vessels to repair damaged vessels or other heart structures, often avoiding the need for surgery.

Cardiac catheterization/coronary angiogram is a procedure used to evaluate your coronary arteries and heart valve function; it will identify the size and location of plaques that may have built up in your arteries from atherosclerosis, the strength of your muscle, and the adequacy of valve function. To start the cardiac catheterization, your cardiologist threads a catheter ( thin flexible tube) through a blood vessel in your arm or groin and into your heart. With the catheter in place, your cardiologist can measure pressures, take blood samples, and inject dyes into your coronary arteries to trace the movement of blood through chambers of the heart. By watching the dye move through your heart’s chambers and blood vessels, your cardiologist can see whether the arteries are narrowed or blocked, and whether the valves are working properly.

Coronary Artery Disease

Coronary artery disease develops when the major blood vessels that supply your heart with blood, oxygen and nutrients (coronary arteries) become damaged or diseased. Cholesterol-containing deposits (plaque) in your arteries and inflammation are usually to blame for coronary artery disease.

Vascular Disease

Today it is well understood that patients who show signs of peripheral vascular disease (sometimes called peripheral arterial disease) and who do not seek treatment may eventually suffer not only considerable pain, discomfort or even actual loss of limb, but also an increase in cardiac mortality.

Pulmonary Embolism

Pulmonary embolism is a blockage in one of the pulmonary arteries in your lungs. In most cases, pulmonary embolism is caused by blood clots that travel to the lungs from the legs or, rarely, other parts of the body (deep vein thrombosis).

Cardiogenic Shock

Cardiogenic shock is a condition in which your heart suddenly can't pump enough blood to meet your body's needs. The condition is most often caused by a severe heart attack, but not everyone who has a heart attack has cardiogenic shock.

Left Atrial Appendage Closure

Left atrial appendage closure (also known as LAA closure or LAAC) is a minimally invasive procedure that is used to reduce the risk of stroke that comes as a result of atrial fibrillation (also known as Afib or AF.) Atrial fibrillation is a common form of arrhythmia, a condition in which the heart beats out of rhythm.

TAVR

This minimally invasive surgical procedure repairs the valve without removing the old, damaged valve. Instead, it wedges a replacement valve into the aortic valve's place. The surgery may be called a transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) or transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI).