Heart Care at Longmont United Hospital...
When Seconds Mean a Lifetime
Longmont United Hospital provides a full spectrum of cardiac care - from diagnosis to open heart surgery in a friendly and comfortable environment. Our services include minimally invasive ablation, cardiac catheterization, angioplasty, cardiac stents, cutting balloon, permanent pacemakers and defibrillators implantations, stress testing, telemetry, echocardiology, Percutaneous Transluminal Rotational Atherectomy or P.C.R.A ,intra-aortic balloon pump insertion, Coronary artery bypass surgery, and value replacement surgery. There is also a specialized cardiac rehabilitation program, including on-site fitness facility.
Our Heart Care Team
Our Heart Care Team of cardiologists, cardiac surgeons, nurses and dedicated staff are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to provide both scheduled and emergency cardiac care in a compassionate and personalized environment.
Our physicians offer comprehensive support for the diagnosis and treatment of cardiac patients. Their expertise along with Longmont United Hospital facilities, staff and services offer individuals access to advanced medical services, comprehensive rehabilitation programs, educational classes and support groups for inpatient and outpatients.
Prevention/Warning Signs
Most heart attacks start with mild pain or discomfort. You often are not feeling well but aren't sure why. The signs that a heart attack is happening are:
- Uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain - any discomfort or pain in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes, or that goes away and comes back
- Pain or discomfort in other areas of the upper body such as one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach
- Shortness of breath
- Cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness
The most common heart attack symptom is chest pain or discomfort however women are more likely to experience chest pain and shortness of breath, nausea/vomiting, and back or jaw pain.
If you experience these symptoms, call 911 immediately.
To find a physician specializing in Heart Care at Longmont United Hospital, visit Find a Physician.
A stress test, sometimes called a treadmill test or exercise test, helps physicians find out how well the heart handles work. As the body works harder during the test, it requires more oxygen to meet the increased metabolic demands of exercise. The electrocardiogram (ECG) is monitored continuously during the test to watch for any changes that suggest ischemia-- an insufficient delivery of oxygen to the working heart muscle. Often, imaging using Echocardiology or Nuclear isotopes is aped to a stress test for more accurate test result.
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Echocardiology is a medical term for the study involving obtaining recorded ultrasonic images of the heart. An echocardiogram is the actual record that is acquired by using ultra sound waves to create a picture of the heart. The medical professionals who administer the tests, check for clarity, and subsequently provide the records to physicians that have special training to interpret the findings of the echocardiologic studies. The most common term related to echocardiology is cardiovascular ultrasound.
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Coronary angiography is a procedure that uses X-ray imaging to exam the blood vessels of your heart (coronary arteries). It is part of a common group of procedures known as cardiac catheterization. During cardiac angiography, x-ray contrast is injected into the blood vessels of your heart. The machine rapidly takes a series of X-ray images (angiograms), representing a detailed peek of the coronary arteries transporting blood flow to your heart. Angiography is one of the most useful and accurate tools in diagnosing and evaluating certain cardiovascular problems.
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The goal of balloon angioplasty is to push the fatty plaque back against the artery wall to make more room for blood to flow through the artery. This improved blood flow reduces the risk of heart attack and supen cardiac death.
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The cutting balloon catheter has a special balloon tip with small blades. When the balloon is inflated, the blades are activated. The small blades score the plaque, then, the balloon compresses the fatty matter into the artery wall.
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A special catheter, with an acorn-shaped, diamond-coated tip, is guided to the point of narrowing in the coronary artery. The tip rotates at very high speeds and grinds away the calcified plaque in your arteries. This process is repeated as needed to improve coronary blood flow. The microscopic particles are washed safely away in your blood stream and filtered out by your liver and spleen.
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A stent can be defined as any medical device that supports tissue, but most commonly, a stent refers to a specific medical device that is placed into an artery. An arterial stent is a mesh-like tube, often made of metal that can expand once it is inserted into an artery. The most frequent placement of stents is in coronary arteries, which are typically blocked by plaque built up inside.
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This is a mechanical device that is used to decrease myocardial oxygen demand while at the same time increasing cardiac output. By increasing cardiac output it also increases coronary blood flow and therefore myocardial oxygen delivery. It consists of a cylindrical balloon that sits in the aorta and counter pulsates. That is, it actively deflates in systole increasing forward blood flow by reducing after-load, and actively inflates in diastole increasing blood flow to the coronary arteries. The balloon is inflated during diastole by a computer controlled, ECG linked mechanism. This controls the flow of helium from a cylinder into and out of the balloon. Helium is used because its low viscosity allows it to travel quickly through the long connecting tubes.
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A pacemaker is a small device that sends small electrical impulses to the heart muscle to maintain a suitable heart rate or to stimulate the lower chambers of the heart (ventricles). Your doctor will decide what type of pacemaker you need based on your heart condition. Your doctor also determines the minimum rate (lowest heart rate) to set your pacemaker. When your heart rate drops below the set rate, the pacemaker generates (fires) an impulse that passes through the lead to the heart muscle. This causes the heart muscle to contract, creating a heartbeat.
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Implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) are used to treat heart rhythms that are abnormally fast and life threatening. They also are often used in patients who are at risk for supen cardiac death (SCD). ICDs have been found to reduce the SCD mortality rate when compared with conventional treatment. More than 300,000 patients around the world have received a potentially lifesaving ICD.
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Open-heart surgery includes surgery on the heart muscle, valves, arteries, or other structures. A heart-lung machine (also called cardiopulmonary bypass) is usually used to help provide oxygen-rich blood to the brain and other vital organs. It pumps, supplies oxygen to, and removes carbon dioxide from the blood.
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This in a new procedure introduced this year to our hospital for the treatment of Atrial fibrillation. This type of procedure is sometimes called radiofrequency ablation or just ablation. Ablation can now be performed making small insertions on the chest wall where catheters are inserted and positioned with great accuracy. Ablation is a procedure to restore normal rhythm by destroying very small, carefully selected parts of the electrical conduits inside the heart that cause abnormal heart rhythms.
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Telemetry is used to monitor your heart rhythm on a continuous basis. In order to do this, we attach either 3 or 5 wires (called leads), to your chest wall with sticky patches. The wires are attached to a battery powered portable transmitter, which sends signals to the monitor that is at the nursing station. Your heart rhythm is watched on a monitor by specially trained staff at all times. An alerting function can summon nurse if the patient is suffering from an acute or dangerous condition.
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Cardiac rehabilitation is a treatment plan that generally follows first diagnosis of a heart attack and/or a heart-related procedure such as bypass surgery or balloon angioplasty. This medically supervised program is designed to help patients recover more quickly, but at a safe pace. Cardiac rehab generally involves nutrition counseling, supervised exercise and instruction on stress management. When followed, it can reduce the risk of a first or repeat heart attack as well as improve overall heart health.
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