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7/14/2003
In past years, cardiology focused on prevention and treatment in individuals who had or were prone to have heart attacks. With time have come dramatic medical advances through continuous research and the development of drugs and products to prolong lives. The population
is living to an older age, and therefore our hearts are aging as well.
As technology has advanced, diagnosis and treatment choices for heart problems have increased exponentially, requiring the division of cardiology into subspecialties such as interventional cardiology, electrophysiology, pediatric cardiology, specialized heart failure care and cholesterol and lipid treatment. Around the country, centers offering subspecialized treatments are becoming standard. In Baldwin County, Cardiology Associates is equipped with experts in all of these new, growing fields allowing us to bring our patients the latest that modern science has to offer.
In addition to the full service cardiology offices, providing everything from blood pressure, pacemaker and coumadin checks and same day nuclear studies, Cardiology Associates also offers:Interventional Cardiology
Once a blockage is detected, interventional cardiologists open partially or completely blocked blood vessels, which is, to date, the most effective way to prevent a blockage from turning into a first or a repeat heart attack. These procedures work by either pushing plaque formations back against the walls of vessels or by removing them with specialized tools. Also, quite frequently, interventional treatment today involves the use of a small metal device known as a stent. A stent is smaller than the spring in a ball point pen and helps to hold the cleared vessel open and keep blood flow moving appropriately to the heart.
There are many types of interventional procedures, all being performed in our area by interventional cardiologists Frank Bunch, M.D., Brian Dearing, M.D. and David Trice, M.D. A brief listing and description of them is outlined here.
During Atherectomy, narrowed arteries are widened by inserting a catheter carrying a device such as a rotating drill or a cutter into the artery to break up and remove plaque.
Balloon Angioplasty is also known as PTCA or coronary angioplasty. A catheter with a small balloon is inserted into the blocked artery and inflated to open the artery that supplies the heart muscle with blood.
Laser Angioplasty is performed using a catheter with a fiber-optic probe. Once inside the blocked artery, an intense, highly concentrated beam of light passes through the catheter and heats the probe. The heat generated by the probe helps vaporize the plaque.
Brachytherapy uses small, safe doses of radiation on the artery walls where a plaque was
compressed by balloon angioplasty. The radiation helps keep scar tissue, which could occlude blood flow again, from forming at the site of the procedure.
Drug Eluting Stents are the newest thing available in interventional cardiology care. These stents, approved by the FDA in April 2003 will be available in our area during summer 2003. They are coated with a drug that is released into the artery walls to help prevent scar tissue from forming and re-occluding blood flow.
Electrophysiology
Stephanie Grosz, M.D., an electrophysiologist with Cardiology Associates, explains that she is “a cardiologist dedicated to the detection and treatment of heart rhythm disorders called arrhythmias, common disorders of the regular rhythmic beating of the heart.” She is quick to reassure that, “This disorder can occur in a healthy heart and may not be life threatening.” However, arrhythmias can be an indication of a serious problem and lead to heart disease, stroke or sudden cardiac death. Once an arrhythmia is suspected, electrophysiologists conduct diagnostic testing to determine the severity of the disorder and the best way to treat it. Dr. Grosz sees arrhythmia patients in the Foley office during the third week of each month.
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