Who Needs Cardiac Catheterization?
Cardiac catheterization is used to diagnose and/or
treat various heart conditions. Doctors may recommend this procedure for a
number of different reasons. The most common reason is to evaluate chest pain.
Chest pain can be a symptom of
coronary
artery disease (CAD), and cardiac catheterization can show whether plaque
is narrowing or blocking your hearts arteries.
CAD can be treated during cardiac catheterization
with a procedure called
angioplasty
(AN-jee-oh-plas-tee). During angioplasty, a tiny balloon is put through the
catheter and into the blocked artery. When the balloon is inflated, it
compresses the plaque that has built up inside the artery. This creates a wider
pathway for blood to flow to the heart. Sometimes a
stent
is placed in the artery during angioplasty. A stent is a small mesh tube
thats used to treat narrowed or weakened arteries in the body.
Most people who have
heart
attacks have partially or completely blocked coronary arteries. Thus,
cardiac catheterization may be done on an emergency basis while youre
having a heart attack. When used with angioplasty, the procedure allows the
doctor to open up blocked arteries and prevent more damage to your heart.
You also may have cardiac catheterization to help
your doctor figure out the best treatment for your CAD if you:
- Recently recovered from a heart attack, but are
having chest pain
- Had a heart attack that caused major damage to
your heart
- Had an
EKG
(electrocardiogram),
stress
test, or other test with results that suggested heart disease
You also may need cardiac catheterization if your
doctor suspects you have a
heart
defect or if youre about to have heart surgery. The procedure shows
the overall shape of your heart and the four large spaces (heart chambers)
inside it. This inside view of the heart will show certain heart defects and
help your doctor plan your heart surgery.
Sometimes your doctor may do a cardiac
catheterization to see how well the valves at the openings and exits of the
heart chambers are working. Valves control the flow of blood in the heart.
To evaluate the valves, your doctor will measure
blood flow and oxygen levels in different parts of your heart. Cardiac
catheterization also can check how well an artificial heart valve is working or
how well your heart is pumping blood.
If your doctor thinks you have a heart infection or
tumor, he or she may take samples of your heart muscle through the catheter.
With the help of cardiac catheterization, doctors can even do minor heart
surgery, such as repair certain heart defects.
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