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For patients experiencing a heart attack, fast treatment is key. Getting into a hospital emergency department is the first step. Patients are encouraged to go to the hospital at the first sign of heart attack. Often, an emergency angioplasty is needed to open up clogged heart arteries.
At DMC Sinai-Grace, we are able to rush heart patients from arrival at the hospital through rapid triage in the Emergency Department to the cath lab in less than 90 minutes. Fast treatment is critical to patient recovery. The sooner a blocked coronary artery is opened and blood flow restored, the less damage is done to the heart muscle.
DMC Sinai-Grace recently completed extensive remodeling and expansion in its cardiac cath lab area, bringing improvements in technology that will ensure continued high-quality patient care. The hospital now has four cath labs to help ensure prompt patient care.
Patients are cared for before and after cardiac cath procedures in our nine-bed recovery unit. It features advanced patient monitoring equipment and is staffed by highly trained nurses.
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Our new cardiac cath lab.
Preparing for a Cardiac Cath
If your doctor has decided you need a cardiac cath, you will be provided prescriptions and a referral. Members of the catheterization team will contact you prior to your procedure and instruct you on all facets of the procedure. They can answer any questions or concerns you may have.
New Technology Helps Diagnose Blockages
New in the cardiac cath lab is intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) equipment. With it, cardiologists can view detailed images of the walls of blood vessels, including those that feed the heart. The new technology uses ultrasound imaging equipment threaded into a patient’s artery within the heart to diagnose blood vessel blockages.
Used during a catheterization procedure, the IVUS provides a full-color image of the inside of a patient’s blood vessel.
The IVUS helps cardiologists determine the exact type of plaque or atherosclerosis that is causing a blockage so they know exactly how to proceed with treatment. For example, some plaque material is more likely to break loose and cause an acute heart attack, other plaque is more stable. The IVUS helps predict a patient’s likelihood of a future heart attack and helps plan how and when to treat the blockage.
The IVUS can also more accurately measure the size of the artery, giving doctors an indication of the severity of the blockage and which size stent to use.
Dr. Mahmood with IVUS equipment.
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