The arm–leg (blood pressure) gradient is the difference between the blood pressure measured in the arms and that measured in the legs. It is normally less than 10 mmHg, but may be increased in e.g. coarctation of the aorta. Continue reading
Blood pressure is the amount of force (pressure) that blood exerts on the walls of the blood vessels as it passes through them. Two pressures are measured for a blood pressure reading:
If coronary artery stenting is superior to angioplasty, why is it not used in every single case? Good question! If stents could be delivered to every lesion, and if it had the same good short and long term results in every case, it would be used in 100% cases of angioplasty. However, this is not the case. Stents are difficult to deliver across tight bends in blood vessels (particularly if they have a lot of calcium deposits in the wall) and are not usable in very small blood vessels. There are other types of technical considerations that also come into play. Today, it is estimated that stents are employed in nearly 50-75% of cases. Continue reading
A coronary stent is a tube placed in the coronary arteries that supply the heart, to keep the arteries open in the treatment of coronary heart disease. It is used in a procedure called percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Stents reduce chest pain and have been shown to improve survivability in the event of an acute myocardial infarction. Continue reading
When it is difficult to assess or record a symptom because it only happens infrequently – as with blackouts – a Reveal© device can be used. The device, which is the size of a packet of chewing gum, is placed under the skin at the left shoulder. You will need to go into hospital as a day case to have this done. A small cut about 2 cm long (just under one inch) is made and the device is inserted. The device monitors the heart’s rhythm and can record any abnormal events that it is programmed to detect. If anything happens, a small box with a button can also be placed on the surface of the skin over the Reveal© device. The device may then be activated by pressing the button, causing it to record the preceding 15 minutes of the heart’s activity. The device can then be ‘interrogated’ by a computer at the hospital and the doctor can examine the recording. The device has a battery that can last up to two years if necessary. Continue reading
Because the conditions that cause sudden arrhythmic death syndrome (SADS) can be inherited it is important that, if you are a blood relative in the immediate family of someone who has died of SADS, you are evaluated for signs of these diseases, particularly the ion channelopathies. There may also have been other sudden or suspicious deaths in your family, including cot deaths, suggesting that there may be an underlying inheritable condition. Below, we explain what is involved in the evaluation and describe the tests you may need to have. Continue reading
Having bradycardia (say “bray-dee-KAR-dee-uh”) means that your heart beats very slowly. For most people, a heart rate of 60 to 100 beats a minute while at rest is considered normal. If your heart beats less than 60 times a minute, your doctor may diagnose bradycardia. Continue reading
Aortic valve regurgitation — or aortic regurgitation — is a condition that occurs when your heart’s aortic valve doesn’t close tightly. Aortic valve regurgitation allows some of the blood that was just pumped out of your heart’s main pumping chamber (left ventricle) to leak back into it. Continue reading
Coronary angiography is the process of creating an angiogram of your heart using dye, a thin, flexible, hollow tube called a catheter and a rapid succession of x-rays resulting in a motion picture.
Patients are awake during the procedure so that you can follow instructions. Throughout the procedure you may be asked to take deep breaths, hold your breath, cough or place your arms in various positions. Your table may be tilted at times. Continue reading
Transposition of the great arteries (TGA) is the most common cyanotic congenital heart lesion that presents in neonates. The hallmark of transposition of the great arteries is ventriculoarterial discordance, in which the aorta arises from the morphologic right ventricle and the pulmonary artery arises from the morphologic left ventricle. Continue reading