Cardiology – MGH

Cardiology

Did you know Marion General Hospital offers expert interventional cardiac care close to home? The same level of care and expertise offered in bigger cities at larger hospitals is available in Marion. Now, you can be close to your family and friends and avoid the problems associated with traveling out of town. Our cardiologists, interventional cardiologists, registered nurses and registered radiology technicians perform the following procedures:

A cardiac catheterization is the insertion of a flexible tube into the coronary arteries. Dye is injected through the tube to illuminate the arteries under x-ray to show narrowing or blockage of the arteries. The procedure usually takes less than one hour and requires 1-4 hours of bed rest afterwards. To date, MGH and its staff have performed over 4,000 of these procedures.

If a cardiac catheterization shows a narrowing or blockage, coronary angioplasty and stent placement may be able to open the artery. These procedures are often done right after the cardiac cath.Both procedures use catheters similar to the ones used for the cardiac cath. Angioplasty uses a balloon-tipped catheter to inflate and widen the artery.A stent is used to hold open an artery that has been widened by angioplasty and requires further support. A stent is a mesh tube that is collapsed over the balloon-tipped catheter and used to prop open an artery during coronary angioplasty.When the balloon is inflated, the stent expands, locks in place and forms a scaffold. This holds the artery open. The stent stays in the artery permanently when the balloon-tipped catheter is deflated and removed from the artery.Depending on the location and size of the blockage, one or both procedures may be done. Coronary angioplasty and stent placement requires an overnight stay.

During an electrophysiology study (EPS); your heart rhythm is monitored from inside the heart with special equipment. A specially trained cardiologist, called an "electrophysiologist" performs the test.Any changes that are induced or triggered during the test are studied to determine what exactly the problem is and what can be done to control it. The electrophysiology study usually takes from 1-2 hours. Depending on the findings, you may go home after a few hours or stay overnight.

A pacemaker is a small electronic device that is permanently placed inside your body. A pacemaker monitors your heart rhythm. When the device detects a slow heart rate it sends out electrical signals to speed the heartbeat up. This procedure normally takes 1-2 hours and may require an overnight stay.

An ImplantabIe Cardioverter-Defibrillator (ICD) is like a pacemaker with some extra features. If the rhythm becomes too fast or too slow, the ICD sends out electrical signals that help bring the rhythm back to normal by sending out pacing impulses or by briefly shocking the heart to allow it to return to a normal rhythm. This procedure normally takes 1-2 hours and usually requires an overnight stay.

When you have heart failure, your heart is weakened and doesn't pump as well as it should. A biventricular ICD is a treatment option that may decrease heart failure symptoms.It is an ICD with extra features to help a weakened heart maintain a healthy heartbeat and assist the heart in pumping more effectively. The implant procedure normally takes 2-4 hours and requires an overnight stay.These procedures are completed in our state-of-the-art, totally digital Cardiac Catheterization/Electrophysiology Labs by our experienced, local cardiologists and interventional cardiologists from Care Group Cardiology, Indianapolis.

MGH prides itself in being able to offer our patients these invasive cardiac procedures close to home, family and friends. We have the quality and expertise needed to provide our Healthcare Community with the highest level of cardiac care. Cardiac care which is only a heartbeat away.

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Cardiology - MGH