Cardiology Intervention Services

Cardioversion
A treatment for rapid or irregular heart rhythm. A small electric shock is given to the heart muscle in attempt to restore normal rhythm. This is done under sedation.

Catheter Ablation
A procedure that uses small wires threaded to the heart to eliminate (ablate) part of an abnormal electrical pathway in the heart that is causing an abnormal heart rhythm or arrhythmia.

Coil Embolization
A procedure used to close an unwanted blood vessel. A tiny metal coil is placed inside the unwanted blood vessel causing it to close off.

Coronary Angioplasty (PTCA)
Dilates (widens) narrowed arteries. A catheter with a deflated balloon on its tip is passed into the narrowed artery. The balloon is inflated and the narrowed artery is widened. (Also called PTCA-Percutaneous Transluminal Coronary Angioplasty)

Coronary Stent Placement
A procedure used to help keep narrowed arteries open. A small wire mesh tube is placed in an artery to form a rigid support and to hold the artery open after angioplasty. The stent becomes a permanent part of the artery and does not move after it is in place. Sometimes these stents have medicine coatings that help with proper healing.

Directional Coronary Atherectomy
Removes the material (plaque) causing a narrowing in the coronary artery, which decreases blood flow to the heart muscle. A special catheter is used to shave and remove the plaque in a coronary artery. Sometimes used prior to stent placement.

Doppler Flow Wire
A special wire capable of measuring flow is threaded into the coronary artery to how well the artery supplies the heart muscle with needed blood. This is sometimes used during cardiac catheterization to see if a blockage is significant and requires an intervention.

Implantable Cardiac Defibrillator (ICD)
A device consisting of a battery and leads is placed inside the chest to monitor the heart and treat serious abnormal rhythms. It may treat the abnormal rhythm in several different ways depending on how the cardiologist programs it. It may deliver electrical impulses to stimulate or pace the heart, or it may deliver a sudden burst of energy to shock the heart out of an abnormal rhythm.

Intra-Aortic Balloon Insertion
A catheter with a large balloon on the end is inserted in the groin and guided into the aorta (the main large artery of the body). It is used to support the heart and provide extra blood supply to the coronary arteries. This is typically used in patients with large heart attacks or severe heart failure in the setting of the critical care unit or catheterization lab.

Pacemaker
An implanted device used to stimulate the heartbeat preventing slow heart rhythms. It consists of a generator (battery) and leads (wires). The leads are placed inside the heart and connected to a generator placed under the skin in the upper chest.

Pericardiocentesis
A small needle is inserted under local anesthesia into the sac around the heart muscle to drain fluid that is causing symptoms. The fluid is often sent for testing to help with diagnosis and treatment. Sometimes ultrasound is used to help with proper needle placement.

Percutaneous Transluminal Angioplasty
This refers to any procedure involving restoring normal blood flow to narrowed arteries in the arms and legs. A catheter (a small hollow tube) is threaded through a blood vessel to the narrowed artery. A balloon is used to open up the blockage and often to place a stent (a small wire mesh) to keep it open and heal properly. The major arteries to the arms, called the subclavian arteries, and the major arteries to the legs, called the iliacs are the usual targets although smaller vessels further downstream can also benefit from this technique.

Renal Artery Stenting
The blood vessels that supply the kidneys are called renal arteries. These may develop blockages leading to problems with hypertension and occasionally kidney failure. A wire mesh called a stent can be placed across a blockage to restore normal blood flow using techniques similar to how we open up the arteries that feed the heart.

Rotational Coronary Atherectomy
(Also called Rotablator) A procedure to open narrowed arteries. A rotablade is a high-speed spinning device that removes the material (plaque) blocking an artery in order to improve blood supply to the heart muscle. This is often used prior to stent placement.

Transluminal Extraction Catheterization
A catheter is inserted through a blood vessel in the groin and guided to the heart. The catheter is placed inside a coronary artery that has a blood clot. The catheter then removes or extracts the blood clot.

Temporary Wire Placement
A small wire is placed through a vein into the heart to stimulate a heart that is beating too slowly. The wire acts as a back up until a permanent pacemaker can be placed or until the heart heals and paces normally by itself.