Cardiac catheterization definition
Cardiac catheterization is a medical procedure designed to determine your heart health condition. This procedure is also important to detect if there are any problems in the heart and treat some heart problems.
This procedure is most widely performed to evaluate the health condition of people who often experience chest pain. Chest pain is likely a symptom of coronary heart disease. In addition to chest pain, there are various reasons why doctors perform cardiac catheterization.
Cardiac Catheterization History
Back in the 17th century where the History of cardiac catheterization was started by Claude Bernard (1813-1878), which was used in animal models. What’s interesting about the history of cardiac catheterization is that in the 1930s, Werner Forssmann inserted a catheter into the veins of his own arm, guided by an x-ray device into the right heart atrium.
Forssmann won the Nobel prize in Medicine for this feat, but as a result of this unusual method he was expelled from his post at a hospital.
During World War II, André Frédéric Cournand, a professor at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, and his colleagues were also awarded the Nobel Prize for developing techniques for left and right heart catheterization.
Cardiac Catheterization Indications
Here are some uses for cardiac catheterization:
- Evaluate blood flow and oxygen in different parts of your heart.
- Assess the strength of the heart muscle pumping blood throughout the body.
- See how well the heart valves perform.
- Treat coronary heart disease and heart attack.
- Plan the right treatment. Especially if you’re just recovering from a heart attack but still feel chest pain, get a medical check-up that shows that you have heart disease, or you have a heart attack that causes your heart to be badly damaged.
- Correcting a defective heart with minor surgery.
- Take a sample of your heart muscle to see if you have a heart infection or tumor.
- Check for congenital heart disease in children.
Cardiac catheterization risk
As with other invasive medical measures, there is a risk of cardiac catheterization. But this level of risk is relatively low. But the risk is higher in people who have diabetes or kidney problems, or are 75 years of age or older. Other risks of cardiac catheterization include:
- Allergies to contrast fluid inserted through the catheter
- Bleeding, infection, and bruising at the site of catheter insertion
- Blood clots that trigger a heart attack or stroke
- Disorders of the arteries where the catheter is inserted
- Heart rhythm disorders or arrhythmias
- Tearing of heart tissue.
According to various data from the literature, the likelihood of complications in cardiac catheterization is very small, which is less than 1 percent. As for the risk of death less than 0.2 percent, acute heart attack less than 0.5 percent, stroke less than 0.7 percent, and heart rhythm disorders less than 0.5 percent
Cardiac catheterization preparation
The patient will undergo a blood test and cardiac record (ECG) examination before cardiac catheterization is performed. If the patient is diabetic, the patient should consult a doctor regarding medications taken before undergoing cardiac catheterization. If you suffer from allergies to certain medications, please inform your doctor immediately.
The doctor will also ask the patient to stop taking blood-thinning medications, such as warfarin or aspirin. If the patient is taking other medications or supplements, please inform the doctor. If possible, bring the packaging of the drug to be shown to the doctor, so that the information is clearer and more detailed.
Patients who will undergo cardiac catheterization will be asked to fast at least 6 hours before the catheterization procedure is performed. The goal is to avoid the appearance of side effects due to anesthesia. The hair around the blood vessels to be pierced will also be shaved.
Patients undergoing cardiac catheterization often have to undergo hospitalization. Therefore, the patient must prepare the need to stay at the hospital, along with the family who will take the pickup and accompany while in the hospital. Try to stay calm and relaxed when going through cardiac catheterization. If you feel restless, tell your doctor to help calm down.