Interventional Cardiology
Specialists in interventional cardiology at Lutheran Hospital Heart Center diagnose and treat a range of cardiovascular conditions and are available around the clock for emergency situations. When a person experiences chest pain or other symptoms of a heart attack, Lutheran Hospital is ready to help 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Our interventional team includes specially trained interventional cardiologists, heart and vascular imaging specialists and cardiovascular surgeons who together provide accurate diagnostics and life-saving treatment options. We are invested in providing the most advanced resources for improved patient outcomes, right in northern Indiana.
With advanced technology and training, our team treats a wide range of heart and vascular conditions. From routine care to complex disease management, we have the critical care experience and Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS)/Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) training to care for patients who need an interventional procedure, including:
- Angiography and angioplasty
- Atrial septal defect (ASD) repair
- Endografts for abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA)
- Heart biopsy
- Heart catheterization
- Inferior vena cava (IVC) filters
- Renal access procedures
- Stenting for coronary and peripheral arteries, including renal and carotid arteries
- Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR)
- Transesophageal echocardiography
Most procedures are performed in the Lutheran Heart Center cath labs or hybrid cath lab.
TAVR and Severe Aortic Stenosis
Patients unable to have open heart surgery to treat severe aortic stenosis, a life-threatening heart valve condition, may be candidates for an advanced, less invasive approach called transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). Lutheran Hospital was the first hospital in northern Indiana to offer TAVR and one of the first 10 in the nation to receive transcatheter valve certification.
As a minimally invasive procedure, specialists are able to repair the diseased or damaged aortic valve for seriously ill heart patients who are at too high a risk for traditional valve replacement surgery. With the expertise of an interventional cardiologist and cardiovascular surgeon in Lutheran Hospital’s hybrid cath lab, the new valve is inserted through a catheter and can begin to regulate blood flow.
What is Severe Aortic Stenosis?
Severe aortic stenosis is a narrowing of the heart’s aortic valve opening. This narrowing affects blood flow from the left ventricle to the aorta and on to the rest of the body. As a result, the heart must work harder to push blood through the valve, weakening the heart muscle and increasing the risk of heart failure. In elderly patients, this condition is often caused by the buildup of calcium on the aortic valve’s leaflets, impairing the valve’s ability to fully open and close.
The TAVR Approach
For inoperable or high-risk patients, the valve is delivered by catheter through an incision in the leg while the heart continues to beat. The valve is expanded via balloon and placed within the diseased native valve. The frame of the new valve is very strong and it is held in place by the calcified leaflets of the diseased valve.
For high-risk patients who do not have appropriate access through a leg artery, the valve is delivered by catheter via an incision between the ribs. The surgeon has access to the bottom of the heart (the apex) while the heart continues to beat. The valve is expanded via balloon and placed within the diseased native valve.
Image of the transcatheter heart valve, used to replace the diseased aortic valve.
For more information, talk with your family doctor or cardiologist or call the Heart and Vascular Center at Lutheran Hospital at (260) 458-3500.
Mechanical Circulatory Support
The specialists at Lutheran Hospital use mechanical circulatory support to treat advanced heart failure and other complex diseases of the heart. These devices support the heart by maintaining steady blood flow. They are designed to improve heart function and may deliver short-term solutions or long-term support.
Interventional cardiologists and cardiovascular surgeons utilize clinical expertise to surgically implant mechanical circulatory support devices or, in the case of ECMO, set up the system.
Temporary circulatory assist devices are used during certain high-risk coronary procedures or to allow the heart to rest as it recovers from extensive damage caused by a heart attack. Support devices used at Lutheran Hospital include:
- Intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP)
- ECMO (partial heart-lung bypass)
- Axial flow heart pump for right ventricle assistance
- Axial flow heart pump for left ventricle assistance
- Left ventricular assist device
When medications and therapies are no longer effective in treating advanced heart failure, a ventricular assist device, or VAD, may be implanted. This device helps the lower chambers of the heart pump blood through the heart to the rest of the body. VADs may be used as a step to recovery or as destination therapy for patients unable to have a heart transplant.