About the catheterization procedure
During the procedure, the cardiologist inserts a thin plastic tube through the patient’s artery in the groin or wrist. Via this access point, dedicated, specially designed tubes, called catheters, are advanced through the arterial system to the openings of the coronary arteries that supply blood to the heart muscle itself. By injecting an iodine-containing solution into the mouth of the artery, the doctor can view the vessel using x-ray imaging and thus identify narrowed segments and blockages. The doctor can also use this technique to examine the heart chambers (for pressure, size, and function), and heart valve function.
Information for patients
Each patient can choose his/her physician from the list of specialists in the unit. This choice does not incur additional fees and is independent of the patient’s health maintenance organization and medical insurance coverage.
State-of-the-art therapeutic devices, including drug-eluting stents and other advanced implantable devices, are offered unlimitedly as deemed necessary purely on medical grounds without additional fees or financial commitment to Israeli patients with national health insurance.
Upon discharge, all patients receive a comprehensive report providing a detailed description of the diagnostic findings and therapeutic interventions along with a disk of the catheterization video. This is of key importance for continued medical follow-up in the community by the referring physicians after discharge.
Diagnostic cardiac catheterizations
Diagnostic cardiac catheterizations are used to diagnose:
- Coronary artery disease
- Diseases of the heart muscle (cardiomyopathies)
- Congenital heart defects
- Heart valve disorders
- Cardiac rhythm disorders
Cardiac catheterization treatment
Cardiac catheterization is employed to:
- Save the lives of heart attack victims (an emergent service provided on a 24/7 basis)
- Dilate narrowed and blocked coronary arteries
- Implant artificial heart valves
- Repair congenital heart defects
- Dilate carotid arteries
- Prevent stroke in atrial fibrillation, with the objective of replacing the need for long-term anticoagulation medications (such as Coumadin)
- Implant pacemakers
- Treat rhythm and conduction disorders
- Treat cardiac failure
