Dignity Health | St. Rose Dominican | Reach | Fall 2019

StRoseHospitals.org  7 What happens in a cath lab? A cardiac catheterization lab is where specially trained heart teams perform minimally invasive procedures to diagnose and treat heart problems. Very often, those procedures involve tiny tubes called catheters, which doctors insert into a large blood vessel that leads to the heart. The catheters allow doctors to access the heart and blood vessels without doing surgery. Procedures performed in the cath lab include: Angiography. A catheter is used to inject a dye that can be seen on x-rays as it flows through the heart’s arteries. This lets doctors look for narrowed or blocked arteries that feed the heart. Angioplasty. A catheter with a balloon at its tip is threaded into a narrowed or blocked heart artery. Dye is injected to allow the doctor to see the area. The balloon is inflated, which compresses the blockage in the artery. Doctors may also insert a stent—or wire mesh tube—to help keep the artery open. Balloon valvuloplasty. This also involves the use of a balloon- tipped catheter, which is threaded into a narrowed heart valve. Injected dye provides clearer images of the valve on a monitor. The balloon is expanded to help stretch open the valve. Doctors may also use the catheters to collect blood samples or tissue from the heart, evaluate how well the pumping chambers contract, and measure the oxygen in different parts of the heart. Sources: American Heart Association; National Institutes of Health; Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions Stellar heart and stroke care 4 Have a hearty chuckle. Laughter eases stress, lightening your mood and the extra strain on your heart. For a regular dose of hilarity, set aside time to watch some laugh-out-loud videos. Just not too close to bedtime! 5 Compare food labels for sodium. Too much sodium can boost blood pressure, which is hard on your heart. Different brands of foods can have different sodium amounts. It only takes a moment to read food labels and to choose the brand with the least amount of sodium. Siena Campus. American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline–STEMI Receiving Center GOLD PLUS Achievement Award San Martín Campus. American Heart Association/ American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines–Stroke GOLD PLUS Achievement Award Siena Campus. American Heart Association/ American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines–Stroke GOLD PLUS with Honor Roll Elite Achievement Award