Coronary Angioplasty

An X-ray test that shows the heart arteries, using contrast dye injected through a thin tube, usually from the wrist. Done at Kauvery Heart Institute, Radial Road. It takes 15 to 30 minutes under local anaesthetic, and most patients go home the same day or the next morning. The angiogram shows whether the arteries are narrowed or blocked, and guides the choice between medicines, angioplasty and bypass surgery. If a significant blockage is found, angioplasty can often be done in the same sitting, after discussion with you and your family. Cost on consultation.

Excimer laser coronary atherectomy uses pulses of laser light, delivered through a thin catheter, to break up tough plaque inside a heart artery. It is useful when a balloon cannot cross or open a blockage, in arteries that have been fully blocked for a long time, and in old stents that have narrowed again or never expanded fully because of calcium behind them. Laser is used as part of a planned complex angioplasty at Kauvery Heart Institute, often together with imaging inside the artery and other calcium tools. You stay awake under local anaesthetic and do not feel the laser. Cost on consultation.

TAVI (transcatheter aortic valve implantation) replaces a narrowed aortic valve through the artery at the top of the leg, without open-heart surgery. Done at Kauvery Heart Institute, Radial Road. It is for people with severe aortic stenosis, most often those aged 70 or over or at higher risk from surgery, after assessment by a Heart Team of cardiologist and cardiac surgeon. Evaluation includes an echocardiogram, a TAVI CT scan and an angiogram. The procedure is usually done under local anaesthetic with light sedation, and the typical hospital stay is 2 to 3 days. Read more on our TAVI page. Cost on consultation.

A pacemaker is a small device placed under the skin below the collarbone, with thin leads to the heart. It treats a slow heartbeat or heart block that causes tiredness, dizziness or fainting. It is implanted under local anaesthetic at Kauvery Heart Institute, and most patients stay in hospital for 1 to 2 days. The type of pacemaker is chosen to suit your heart rhythm, and regular device checks are arranged after implantation to make sure it is working well. Cost on consultation.

Catheter ablation treats abnormal heart rhythms at their source. Thin wires are passed to the heart through a vein in the groin, the heart's electrical circuit is mapped, and the small area causing the abnormal rhythm is treated with radiofrequency energy. Done at Kauvery Heart Institute. It is commonly used for supraventricular tachycardia (SVT), atrial flutter and some ventricular rhythm problems. For SVT, success rates reported in published studies are high, and many patients no longer need long-term medicines. Most patients go home the next day. Cost on consultation.

Closing a hole in the heart without surgery, using a small umbrella-shaped device passed through a vein in the groin and guided by X-ray and echocardiography. Done at Kauvery Heart Institute. It is used for atrial septal defect (ASD), patent ductus arteriosus (PDA), selected ventricular septal defects (VSD), and a patent foramen ovale (PFO) in selected patients after a stroke. Most patients go home in 1 to 2 days and return to normal activity within about a week. Cost on consultation.