This allows the specialist to examine heart muscle, valves and coronary arteries on video monitors to confirm or rule out heart disease, and to determine future treatment. Angiography Angiography refers to the process of recording images of blood vessel and heart structures during cardiac catheterization. A special dye makes the heart and arteries visible to the camera that produces your angiogram. These pictures help your specialist select a treatment right for you. Non-Surgical Treatment Traditional surgery is not always required to treat blocked coronary arteries or diseased heart valves.
Doctors sometimes choose to treat patients in the catheterization lab.
Coronary Angioplasty involves threading a special balloon-tipped catheter through the blood vessel to reach and pass into a severe coronary blockage. The cardiologist inflates and reinflates the balloon until the vessel reopens, often restoring critical circulation without the need for surgery. Valvuloplasty is similar to coronary angioplasty, except that the balloon is threaded into the heart valve and used to stretch it open, to improve heart function. Cardiac Surgical Program Thousands of people have come to Arnot Ogden for heart surgery from a 15-county region of New York and Pennsylvania. The Heart Institute's cardiovascular surgeons are experienced, board-certified specialists who routinely perform complex heart surgeries to help people restore their health and quality of life.