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Take a virtual tour of our cardiac cath room!

Cardiac Catheterization

Click here to find a doctor.

Cardiac catheterization is a non-surgical procedure using a long, thin flexible tube called a catheter. The catheter is inserted into a blood vessel guided to the heart. The insertion site can be the arm, wrist or groin. Cardiologists use the procedure to gather information about the coronary arteries and how the heart is functioning. It is the first step to improving heart function through angiograms, angioplasties and stenting.

Cardiac catheterization can be a diagnostic procedure to determine the extent of blockage in coronary arteries, heart valve or heart muscle problems or it can be an emergency procedure on patients with heart attack symptoms.

Procedures available at Kish Hospital:

• Angiography requires injection of dye in the arteries via the catheter. The dye allows the arteries to show up on an X-ray.
  
• Angioplasty uses a balloon attached to the catheter. The balloon is inflated and deflated to open the artery.
  
• Stent deployment is the use of a permanent wire mesh tube inserted into the artery to hold it open.
  
• Pericardiocentesis is for patients with cardiac tamponade. Pericardial fluid can be drained with a needle or catheter.

Electrophysiology

Electrophysiology is a subspecialty within the field of cardiology that emphasizes diagnosis and treatment of abnormal heart rhythms.

Procedures available at Kish Hospital:

• Pacemakers implanted in the upper chest to help the heart maintain a healthy rhythm;
  
• Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (ICD) put into the upper chest to meticulously monitor the heart’s electrical activity. If the ICD detects a deadly rhythm, the ICD will attempt to terminate the deadly rhythm by pacing and or shocking the heart back into normal rhythm.
  
• Loop Recorder, a small device implanted beneath the skin to document abnormal rhythms in the long term.
  
• Noninvasive Program Stimulation (NIPS) to evaluate the function of the patient’s ICD.

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