You are given local anesthesia to insert the catheter, and the only sensation is one of pressure at the site. Discomfort may arise from having to lie still for prolonged periods of time. Risks of the procedure are cardiac arrhythmias , cardiac tamponade , trauma to the artery, low blood pressure , infection, embolism from blood clots at the tip of the catheter, reaction to contrast medium, hemorrhage, stroke , and heart attack . Therapeutic catheterization may be used to repair certain types of heart defects, open a stenotic heart valve, and dilate obstructed arteries or grafts in the heart. Cardiac defects or disease may be present.
Cardiac catheterization is used to study the various functions of the heart.
Using different techniques, the coronary arteries can be viewed by injecting dye or opened using balloon angioplasty. The technique can even be performed in small, newborn infants.