Interventional Cardiology – Heart & Lung Clinic

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Interventional Cardiology

Interventional cardiologists perform minimally invasive and catheter-based procedures for the treatment of heart disease. Our interventional cardiologists are specially trained to perform balloon angioplasty and stent procedures, as well as pacemaker and defibrillator insertion. CHI St. Alexius Health Heart & Lung team provide the latest in cardiac care.

Procedures, Treatments and Test

• Angiogram – An angiogram is an x-ray dye test to take pictures of your blood flow in the body. It can show narrowing of the blood vessel, or aneurysms.
• Angioplasty – This procedure is done to open a partially blocked artery by compressing the fat and calcium buildup against the artery walls. A stent is often used. When done for the heart, it is called coronary angioplasty.
• Ankle-Brachial Index Test (ABI) – The test is done by measuring blood pressure in the ankle and arm while the person is at rest, and after walking on a treadmill for five minutes. Test results may indicate arterial disease.
• Atherectomy – An atherectomy is a cutting drill method used to open a partially blocked blood vessel to the heart by removing fat and calcium buildup in the artery. This is used in special situations in coronary angioplasty.
• Cardiac Catheterization and Coronary Angiogram – This is a test to check your heart and coronary arteries. It is done to find if you have disease in your coronary arteries and if you will need heart bypass surgery or angioplasty.
• Drug-Eluting Stent – See “stent” below.
• Echocardiogram – An echocardiogram is a test that uses ultra sound waves to produce pictures of the heart. It is very useful for heart evaluation in a variety of conditions and situations.
• Electrical Cardioversion – An electrical cardioversion is used to help the heart return to a normal rhythm by stopping the heart for an instant using direct current (DC).
• Electrocardiogram (EKG or ECG) – An electrocardiogram is a test that measures the electrical signals that control rhythm. It measures how the electrical impulses move through the heart.
• Exercise Electrocardiogram – This test checks for abnormalities that occur in your heart while you exercise. The results are compared to your resting electrocardiogram.
• Fluoroscopy – A fluoroscopy test uses a steady beam of x-ray to look at different parts of the body. It can be done to see blood moving through a blood vessel, find a foreign object in the body, position a needle for a medical procedure or realign a broken bone.
• Nuclear Cardiology – Nuclear cardiology is an imaging technique that uses radioisotopes to measure the blood flow to the different regions of the heart. It can assess the pumping function of the heart and the metabolism of the heart.
• Stent – A stent is a small, coiled wire-mesh tube used to hold open a narrowed or clotted blood vessel. Drug-eluting stents are coated with medicine to prevent return of the narrowing (restenosis).
• Transesophageal Echocardiogram (TEE) – A TEE is performed by inserting a transducer through the mouth and down the throat. Ultrasound waves are sent through the transducer to produce a picture of the heart.
• Ventriculogram – A ventriculogram is done by taking x-ray dye images of your heart to show the movement of your heart, size of left ventricle, how your left ventricle pumps blood and how well blood flows through your heart valves. It is done at the time of cardiac catheterization.

Interventional Cardiology Providers

• J. Hoyt, MD [1]
• C. Ilie, MD [2]
• B. Mathew, MD [3]
• R. Oatfield, MD [4]