What elective procedures will be performed in the Cardiac Cath Lab?

Elective procedures performed in the cath lab will include left heart catheterizations or angiograms, which look at the coronary arteries around the heart and is also used to measure the pressures inside the heart chambers. We will be able to fix blockages in the arteries with a balloon and stents.

For elective procedures, patients generally can go home after a couple of hours after the procedure.

What emergent procedures will be performed in the Cardiac Cath Lab?

Someone who’s experiencing chest pain, angina or a positive nuclear stress test, or having a heart attack, will be taken to the cardiac cath lab.   A cardiac catheterization was typically done by inserting a tiny little tube in the artery at the groin level, going all the way up to the heart and injecting dye into the little arteries that supply blood to the heart.  Now more than 90 percent of the time, these procedures are performed going in from the wrist to get to the heart and take pictures of the arteries of the heart.

Once we get into the arteries of the heart we open the artery with a little balloon and put a tiny medicated stent inside the artery.  The medication slowly releases from the stent into the wall of the artery, preventing the progression of the disease or the development of scar tissue inside the stent.  The stent opens the blockages in the arteries of the heart so the blood can flow freely.

If the procedure was an emergency, the patient will stay in the hospital for 24-48 hours to be under observation.

In some cases when there are so many blockages that cannot be opened up with balloons or stents, the patient needs to be referred for coronary artery bypass surgery.  Patients have the option to be  transferred to South Shore University Hospital Heart & Lung program, which is nationally recognized as one of the top 50 hospitals in the U.S. for heart surgery and among the top 10 percent in the country for coronary interventional procedures for 2019, according to Healthgrades.  “We have set up a very rapid transfer program between Mather Hospital and South Shore University Hospital where the patient is taken by helicopter,” said Lawrence Ong, MD, Vice President, Cardiac Services, Eastern Region, Northwell Health.

What procedures will be performed in the Electrophysiology Lab?

The majority of procedures performed at the Electrophysiology Lab at Mather Hospital will be elective. There are two major categories of procedures including device implants and electrophysiology studies with and without catheter ablation.

At Mather, patients can come to get treatment via catheter ablation of arrhythmias that arise from the right side of the heart including typical atrial flutter, most supraventricular tachycardias and atrioventricular nodal ablation. Electrophysiologic studies which test electrical conduction in the heart are also performed at Mather. Ablation of complex arrhythmias such as atrial fibrillation, some suparventricular tachycardias and ventricular arrhythmias are referred to our accompanying tertiary care centers (mostly South Shore University Hospital). Other higher risk procedures such as Watchman implant and laser lead extractions are also performed at tertiary care centers.

At our state of the heart electrophysiology lab, we are able to provide the full range of device implants including pacemakers, defibrillators, and biventricular pacing. We also have extensive experience with implantation of novel technologies including leadless pacing, subcutaneous implantable cardioverters defibrillators and conduction system pacing.

When your heart needs help, we’re here for you 

We are an integral part of the Northwell Cardiovascular Institute, the most experienced cardiac team in the tri-state area with the nation’s highest cardiac success rates. With hundreds of experts working together across 65-plus locations and eight counties, we deliver lifesaving care for all. 

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