The heart attack team was ready and waiting when Paul arrived in the cardiac cath lab for his angiogram. Earlier that morning, EMTs and the emergency staff had notified the lab that he would be coming. Angiography is an important diagnostic tool that can determine which coronary arteries are blocked and the extent of the blockage.

Preparing for the angiogram
While the emergency center doctor updated the interventional cardiologist on Paul’s condition, the heart attack team prepared Paul for the procedure by attaching EKG leads and a defibrillator patch to his chest. They also administered a sedative to help him relax.

When Paul was positioned on the table, the cardiologist used a local anesthetic to numb the area at the top of his leg where a catheter would be inserted into the femoral artery, guided through the aorta and then to each of the coronary arteries. “Once the catheter is in place, we can obtain a roadmap of the arteries and any blockages by injecting contrast dye during X-ray imaging,” explains Sarah Vernon, MD, an interventional cardiologist at Park Nicollet Heart and Vascular Center. “This allows us to see how well blood flows through the coronary arteries and to determine the location of any blockages.”

95 percent blockage
Doctors found Paul had a 95 percent blockage in his left anterior descending artery. “That’s one of the main arteries,” Paul explains. “They call it the ‘widow maker.’”

Paul immediately underwent balloon angioplasty, a minimally invasive procedure that opened the blocked artery and restored blood flow to the heart. First, a tiny balloon was inflated to push open the blockage. Like most patients, Paul had a stent inserted immediately after the angioplasty. This small, expandable metal tube will help keep his artery from narrowing or closing.

“Normally, when we open a blocked artery, patients will experience immediate pain relief. We can typically tell by looking at them that their heart attack is over. It is a very rewarding experience,” explains Dr. Vernon.

When minutes count
“We continually review our procedures in an effort to get patients treated with angioplasty as quickly as possible,” Dr. Vernon says. “From the time a patient arrives at the hospital to the angioplasty is called the door-to-balloon time. Studies show that the faster clogged arteries can be reopened, the more likely patients are to survive heart attacks.”

Park Nicollet Heart and Vascular Center carefully tracks how long it takes to unblock the arteries of its heart attack patients. Its average door-to-balloon time is 62 minutes. Hospitals of similar size throughout the country perform these procedures in 89 minutes. Because of this quick response time, the Heart and Vascular Center has increased the survival rate of heart attack patients to 93 percent.

Thanks to these efforts, the center is recognized for many accomplishments.

• It received the 2010 HealthGrades® Cardiac Care Excellence Award™ for ranking in the top 10 percent of all hospitals in the country for cardiovascular services.
• It was named one of the 13 highest-value hospitals by Leapfrog Group.
• It has the lowest 30-day, risk adjusted heart attack mortality and readmission rates in the Twin Cities, according to Medicare.

To learn more about Paul’s post heart attack rehabilitation, read “Working toward recovery.” To learn more about angioplasty and stents, visit parknicollet.com/heart.