Medical Procedures for Heart and Vascular Diseases Flashcards
Atherectomy
Similar to angioplasty but catheter has rotating shaver to cut away plaque from artery and increase bloodflow.
Automatic Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator (AICD)
Surgically implanted device similar to a pacemaker that monitors heart rhythm and delivers electrical shocks to restore normal rhythm when necessary.
Balloon Angioplasty
Temporarily inserting a small balloon-tipped catheter into a stenotic artery and expanding the balloon at the site of blockage to widen a narrowed artery. Usually combined with a stent to prop open the artery and decrease chance of restenosis.
Balloon Valvuloplasty
Uses cardiac catherization to treat stenotic heart valves. Balloon-tipped catheter threaded through veins to faulty heart valve then inflated to open the narrowed valve.
Cardiac Ablation
Surgical procedure that uses radio frequencies or chemicals to destroy areas of the myocardium that cause cardiac arrhythmia. Used for those with tachycardia that cannot be controlled well with medication or those who have arrhythmias that respond well to ablation, such as Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome.
Cardiac Pacemaker
Surgically implanted to treat conditions affecting electrical conduction of the heart, including slow HR and arrhythmias.
Cardioversion
Performed to restore a normal heart rhythm for tachyarrhythmias that do not respond to medication. Electrical shocks delivered by defibrillator through electrodes on the chest.
Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery (CABG)
Performed to treat coronary arteries that are narrowed or occluded in an attempt to revascularize the myocardium. Blood is rerouted around the occlusion of the affected artery. Uses the saphenous vein, internal thoracic/mammary artery, or radial artery to connect the affected artery above and below the occlusion.
Enhanced Extracorporeal Counterpulsion (EECP)
Inflation of pressure cuffs on LEs compress the veins and assist with venous return to heart.
Heart Transplant
Reserved for those with end-stage heart failure for whom other treatments have not been successful.
Intra-aortic Balloon Counterpulsation (IABC)
Inflation and deflation of a balloon surgically placed in aorta provides circulatory assistance for those after infarct or with cardiogenic shock.
Valve Replacement
Prosthetic valve used to replace a leaky or narrowed heart valve. May be mechanical or tissue grafts from the same patient, a cadaver, or a pig.
Ventricular Assist Device (VAD)
Pump implanted in the chest to provide mechanical support to the ventricle. A right ventricular assistive device (RVAD) attaches to the R atrium and pulmonary artery, bypassing the R ventricle. A LVAD attaches to L atrium, bypassing L ventricle. With a biventricular device (BiVAD), both ventricles are bypassed. Commonly used as a temporary treatment for people waiting for a heart transplant and increasingly as a permanent treatment for heart failure.
