Meadows Regional Medical Center
Services
- Angioplasty
Angioplasty is an interventional heart treatment that allows a board-certified cardiologist to use an inflatable balloon to release a blocked artery. The treatment is provided during a heart attack and, ideally, before heart muscle is permanently damaged from the lack of blood flow. Angioplasty and stent implantation are the preferred treatments of the American Heart Association and American College of Cardiologists for emergency heart attack treatment. Having this advanced level of coronary intervention shortens the time until treatment for heart attack victims.
Meadows is one of the few hospitals offering an advanced form of angioplasty called radial angiography. In radial angiography, the catheter inserts at the wrist, rather than the traditional approach through the femoral artery, and approaches the heart via the radial artery. This modern new approach often gives patients greater post-surgery mobility, a shorter hospital stay and fewer complications. - Cardiac catheterizations
- EKGs An electrocardiogram (EKG) can provide physicians important information about the heart’s rhythm. It can show evidence of a previous heart attack, increased thickness of heart muscle, decreased oxygen delivery to the heart, and electrical problems within the heart itself. An EKG is often used any time someone is suspected to have a heart-related health problem.
- Oxygen therapy Oxygen therapy can increase the supply of oxygen to the lungs for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD) and anyone who may need additional oxygen during the day or night. By increasing the oxygen in the lungs, more oxygen is available for body tissues, enabling cells to function as they should.
- Pacemaker insertion
- Peripheral vascular diagnostics and treatment
- Pulmonary function testing
- Stent implantation
- Stress testing Physicians use stress testing to help diagnose coronary heart disease (CHD) which can limit blood flow to the heart, potentially causing a heart attack. A stress test also may be used to assess other problems, such as heart valve disease or heart failure.
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During cardiac catheterization, a long, thin, flexible tube called a catheter is inserted through your arm, groin or neck and passed through a large blood vessel to your heart. Through this catheter, your physician can pinpoint blockages or potential blockages in your heart and its surrounding blood vessels.
Catheterization is the most advanced procedure for evaluating the condition of your heart and its blood vessels. The information it provides can help your physician treat coronary heart disease, which could lead to a heart attack, stroke or other cardiac event.
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During the exam, small sticky electrodes are applied to the body and connected to an EKG machine. The machine then records the electrical impulses created by the heart and displays them on a special graph paper to be interpreted by a physician. The whole exam only takes a few minutes.
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Oxygen therapy can be administered in a number of ways, from personal oxygen tanks that a person carries with him or her, to raised air pressure applications, such as in hyperbaric oxygen therapy.
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A pacemaker is a small electrical device placed under the skin to help control abnormal heart rhythms, called arrhythmias.
Pacemakers use small electrical pulses to prompt the heart to beat at a normal rate. Newer pacemakers also can monitor blood temperature, breathing rate, and other factors and adjust the heart’s rate to accommodate changes in activity level.
Pacemakers may be used on a temporary basis to treat temporary heartbeat problems, such as a slow heartbeat due to heart attack, heart surgery, or a medicine overdose.
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In peripheral artery disease, the arteries that supply blood to the feet and legs narrow or harden. The lack of blood flow can harm nerves or other tissue in the feet and legs.
Several forms of diagnostic testing can uncover peripheral artery disease (PAD). Based on the level of severity, physicians have a variety of treatment options to counteract PAD. Treatments range from self-care to angioplasty and stent implantation.
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Pulmonary function tests are done to diagnose breathing difficulties such as asthma, bronchitis and emphysema. They also can help assess a medication’s effectiveness and measure progress in disease treatment.
As a patient breathes into different devices, technologists measure lung capacity, assess breathing rate and evaluate how well the lungs can absorb oxygen into the bloodstream.
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Stents are small, wire scaffold-like supports that support blocked or collapsed arteries. In stent implantation, a stent is tightly mounted on an angioplasty balloon. The two are guided to the site of the blockage where the cardiologist inflates the balloon, which stretches open the stent. The stent is then implanted into the walls of the blocked artery where it remains permanently to support the artery.
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During a stress test, electrodes are attached to the body to measure changes in heart rate and blood pressure as well as changes in the heart's rhythm or electrical activity. Since the heart has to work harder during exercise, the test often is performed on a treadmill or stationary bike. This enables physicians to detect problems that may not be apparent during periods of rest.
If patients cannot exercise on a treadmill or bicycle, the cardiologist may perform a pharmacological stress test, which involves using medicine to simulate the effects of exercise on
the heart.
Contact
Cardiology Services
912-535-5824
Cardiology Services
912-535-5824
Meadows Regional is a Joint Commission accredited hospital.
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One Meadows Parkway, Vidalia, Georgia 30474
Phone: 912-535-5555 or 855-535-MRMC (toll-free)