Heart Conditions Treated Without Surgery
Penn Cardiac Care cardiologists are using the Amplatzer®
Septal Occluder System to close congenital heart defects
without performing open-heart surgery. Patent foramen
ovale (PFO) and atrial septal defects (ASD) are holes
between the heart’s upper chambers
that, over time, can impair the function of the heart
and lungs, as well as lead to stroke.
PFOs exist in newborn babies to allow blood to bypass
the lungs. They usually close naturally shortly after
birth, but some remain open and can be the source of
strokes. ASDs are larger holes that cause the heart
to work harder and less efficiently. Because symptoms,
if any, are mild (a heart murmur), many defects go undetected
until later in life.
The Amplatzer, which is inserted through a special
catheter (a small tube that accesses the heart through
a tiny incision in the groin, arm or neck) and placed
in the hole of the heart; allows larger holes to be
closed than previously possible using other devices.
“The device is implanted permanently, and in
three to six months completely covered by heart tissue,
becoming part of the heart’s wall,” says Howard
C. Herrmann, director of interventional cardiology
at Penn Cardiac Care at the University of Pennsylvania
Medical Center.
This minimally invasive procedure prevents and decreases
the recurrence of stroke, reduces pain, and provides
improved results and shorter recovery than surgery.
Most patients can go home the next day. “Symptoms
in my patients who have been treated with the device
have improved remarkably; patients have returned to
work within a few days,” says Gary
Vigilante, MD, a cardiologist at Penn Cardiac Care
at Presbyterian Medical Center.
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