Cardiac Catheterization in the Diagnosis of Heart Ailments

Heart ailments are very common now a days. Chest pain is a common indication that something may be wrong. After that you will have to consult a cardiologist to get your heart examined. He may refer you to a cardiac unit where a whole lot of necessary tests are done. This may take even a couple of days. If there is a chance that the doctor suspects heart ailments(In French insuffisance cardiaque) he may refer you for a cardiac catheterization which is a procedure done to confirm whether you have a heart condition or not. Heart murmurs are a common ailment among children and adults. This may occur due to a variety of reasons. In adults, it may be caused due to age. In children it may be a birth deficiency. Heart murmur is characterised by a peculiar sound made by the heart when blood flows through it or in the surrounding tissue. It may be so mild that it can barely be heard by your doctor with his stethoscope but it can also be so severe that the murmur can be heard with the stethoscope off the chest.

Heart Disease and Cardiac Catheterization

Cardiac catheterization (In French maladie cardio) is the insertion of a catheter into a chamber of the heart. This is done either for investigating or intervening. Local anaesthetic is injected either in the arm or groin to make the area numb. Usually, the groin is preferred. A puncture is made with a needle in the femur artery of the groin. A guide wire is then inserted into the arterial puncture. A plastic sheath is covered over the wire which is then guided into the artery. The wire is removed and the plastic sheath is punctured so that the arterial blood flows back. It is then flushed with saline. This arterial sheath acts as a conduit as long as the procedure is being done. Catheters are moved towards the heart. When it is in position over the aortic valve, the guide wire is removed. X ray opaque iodine based contrast is injected. This helps the vessels to show up on the x ray image. When the procedure is complete, the catheter is removed. Then pressure is applied either manually or with a machine to prevent further bleeding. There may be an internal suture and a plug. The patient may be asked to lie flat for several hours to prevent bleeding. A stent could also be inserted during cardiac catheterization which may prolong the procedures.