Heart Disease
Treatment Options
There is a new way to treat heart disease
Based on your test results, your doctor and the heart team may determine that you are not a candidate for heart surgery due to higher-than-normal risk.
Medicine
Non-invasive treatment
Initially, your cardiologist may recommend medical therapy for your coronary artery disease. But if symptoms persist, or if your coronary artery disease worsens, you may need a heart procedure.
Risks of taking medicine to treat your coronary artery disease depend on which medication your cardiologist has prescribed. Talk with your cardiologist about the risks of your medication.
Conventional Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI)
Minimally invasive treatment
Your Heart Team may recommend percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for you.
PCI is a minimally invasive heart procedure that uses a small catheter to take pictures and deliver tools that are used to open or unblock arteries narrowed by plaque.
The catheter is inserted through a small incision in either the leg or wrist, to deliver the treatment. A PCI is performed by an interventional cardiologist specializing in minimally invasive heart procedures.
The most common type of PCI is angioplasty, during which a tiny balloon is inflated to compress the plaque against the sides of the artery to help blood flow better. After angioplasty, a stent may be placed to keep the artery open.
PCI may not be available for everyone… but Protected PCI may be an option for you
If you have health risks such as diabetes, kidney disease, or anatomic issues with your heart, you may not qualify for a conventional PCI. However, a procedure called Protected PCI may be an option for some patients with these additional health risks. Learn more about Protected PCI.
Minimally invasive treatment +
support for your heart =
Protected PCI
Your interventional cardiologist may, in consultation with a heart team, want to support your heart during your stenting procedure and may perform a Protected PCI.
Protected PCI is a stenting procedure to treat complex coronary artery disease. It includes the use of the Impella heart pump.
The use of the Impella heart pump during a PCI allows your blood pressure and blood flow to be maintained during the procedure, which may allow your doctor to perform a more complete and optimized procedure.
In addition, Protected PCI with Impella can mean:
Open Heart Surgery
Invasive treatment
Open heart surgery for coronary disease, also referred to as coronary artery bypass grafting, or CABG, can be used to treat coronary artery disease. During CABG, veins or arteries taken from another part of the body are used to bypass the blocked coronary arteries. A CABG procedure requires:
- The chest to be cut open to allow the surgical team to work directly on your heart
- A long recovery and long hospital stay, due to the invasiveness of the procedure
- The patient to be put to sleep under general anesthesia and hooked up to a breathing machine
CABG is performed by a surgeon who specializes in open heart repair, a cardiac surgeon. Because it’s an invasive procedure, CABG may require more days in the hospital and more follow-up visits than less invasive procedures.
Not all patients are candidates for CABG:
CABG has been associated with better long-term outcomes in certain patient groups. Check with your cardiologist to see if surgery is a preferred treatment option for your heart disease.
All heart procedures have risks that may include:
- An allergic reaction to the medication used in conjunction with the procedure
- Clots that can travel through your blood vessels and block the blood flow to other organs, including your lungs, making breathing difficult, or increasing risk of stroke
- An infection, which could be localized or spread throughout your body
- Injury or irritation to your heart tissue, valves, and blood vessels. The injury or irritation may cause your heart to beat irregularly or result in life threatening conditions
- Bleeding, low blood pressure, low platelet count, and/or damage to red blood cells. These conditions can be life threatening
- Your liver, kidneys, or other parts of the body may not receive enough blood to function efficiently and may not work normally
- Your heart may not get better, or your heart failure condition may worsen
- The Impella® may have an unexpected problem requiring it to be removed, which would result in your heart support being stopped
- An infection at the incision site. If you are obese, have diabetes, or if you’ve previously had CABG, the risk of infection is greater
- Memory loss and/or loss of mental clarity
You should take time to research all of your treatment options, making sure you feel comfortable with your treatment plan.
Download the doctor discussion guide for tips on talking with your cardiologist.