Interventional Cardiology
The Interventional Cardiology Program at Penn
Cardiac Care includes a team of dedicated interventional
cardiologists, nurses, and technicians. Together,
they provide the highest quality of care to patients
experiencing the following:
- undiagnosed chest pain syndromes
- chronic angina
- unstable angina
- acute myocardial
infarction
- valvular heart disease
- congestive heart failure
Many patients experiencing the above conditions
benefit from cardiac
catheterization - using angioplasty
and stenting-for the relief of blockages in the
heart. Our program's angioplasty/stent
success rate, which ranks among the best cardiovascular
centers nationwide, is more than 95 percent and
its complication rate below 3 percent. Fewer than
one half of one percent of the patients treated
by angioplasty/stents requires emergency bypass
surgery.
The following tests and procedures are performed
in-house by our outstanding interventional cardiologists
and staff:
- Diagnostic and Therapeutic Interventional
catheterization
- Coronary Stents
- Angioplasty
- Rotablator
- Thrombolectomy
- Balloon
Valvuloplasty
- Cardiac biopsy
- Brachytherapy
- Closure of patent foramen ovale and atrial
septal defects with CardioSEAL® and the Amplatzer
Septal Occluder System®
Interventional cardiologists at the University
of Pennsylvania Medical Center are dedicated full-time
to interventional cardiology and diagnostic cardiac
catheterization procedures and perform nearly
11,000 procedures each year, including 1,000 interventions
(stents, balloons, etc.). Only faculty members
from the Interventional Cardiology Program are
permitted to perform interventional cardiology
procedures at the University of Pennsylvania Medical
Center.
Penn Cardiac Care at the University of Pennsylvania
Medical Center was one of the first medical centers
in the United States to perform coronary stenting.
Our faculty have been performing stent procedures,
as a trial site, since 1989, years before the
procedure was approved for use nationwide.
In addition, our program is also the largest
balloon valvuloplasty center in the region and
one of the largest in the country.
The latest in cutting-edge myocardial infarction
treatment is available at our hospital. Such treatments
include the use of primary angioplasty with stenting
and the new platelet inhibitors. Our team is also
breaking new ground in the emergency room by using
new thrombolytic agents in combination with new
classes of drugs including IIb/IIIa inhibitors.
A number of new devices and treatments are being
used in the catheterization laboratory for patients
who can not be treated with conventional medical
or surgical techniques.
As an alternative for patients requiring open-heart
surgery, Penn Cardiac Care physicians are using
two, double umbrella-type devices called the CardioSEAL®
and the Amplatzer Septal Occluder System®. Both
of these devices have been applied in procedures
in which they percutaneously close patent foramen
ovale and atrial septal defects. We are one of
only a few programs in the Delaware Valley offering
this novel therapy.
Drug-Eluting Stents
When a bare metal stent is implanted in a blocked
artery, there is a risk that the buildup of plaque
will recur around the stent several months after
implantation, a condition called restenosis. If
this happens, additional procedures may be required.
 Drug-eluting
stents are a dramatic technological advancement,
which have been proven to significantly reduce
the risk of restenosis among patients. These stents
are lined with medication which inhibit the build
up of plaque in the artery directly around the
stent, allowing blood to flow. Penn Cardiac Care
interventional cardiologists were among the few
in the country to help develop these stents and
participated in a study which evaluated their
effectiveness. While the risk of restenosis with
traditional stents is 20 percent, the study indicated
that drug-eluting stents decrease the risk to
just five percent, allowing patients to avoid
additional interventions and maintain their lifestyle.
Following the recent approval of drug-eluting
stents by the Food and Drug Administration, our
doctors are implanting them in most patients.
To learn if you are a candidate for this procedure,
please speak to your doctor.
Press Release
Expert
Commentary: Time of the Essence When Transferring
Heart Attack Patients Between Hospitals (2/14/2005)
Interventional Cardiologists
Howard
C. Herrmann, MD
John
W. Hirshfeld, MD
Ruchira
Glaser, MD
Daniel
M. Kolansky, MD
Robert
L. Wilensky, MD
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