Interventional Cardiology

Interventional Cardiology refers to diagnostics and non-surgical treatments of the heart. Cardiac interventions are used to diagnosis and treat coronary artery disease, valvular heart disease and congenital heart disease. Interventional cardiology is a branch of the medical specialty of cardiology that deals specifically with the catheter based treatment of structural heart diseases.Bradenton Cardiology Center is a leader in Interventional Cardiology.

We perform many interventions per year and offer the latest breakthroughs in the treatment of coronary artery disease and peripheral vascular disease.

For Information on Peripheral Angiography & Angioplasty: Click Here

In addition, the Bradenton Cardiology Center offers state-of-the-art cardiac catheterization using state of the art low-radiation, high-resolution digital equipment that maximizes both patient safety and image quality.

A large number of procedures can be performed on the heart by catheterization. This most commonly involves the insertion of a sheath into the femoral artery (but, in practice, any large peripheral artery or vein) and cannulating the heart under X-ray visualization (most commonly fluoroscopy, a real-time x-ray).


Interventional Cardiology System

Procedures performed by specialists in interventional cardiology:

  • Angioplasty (PTCA, Percutaneous Transluminal Coronary Angioplasty) - for coronary atherosclerosis
  • Valvuloplasty - dilation of narrowed cardiac valves (usually mitral, aortic or pulmonary)
  • Procedures for congenital heart disease - insertion of occluders for ventricular or atrial septal defects, occlusion of patent ductus arteriosus, angioplasty of great vessels
  • Emergency angioplasty and stenting of occluded coronary vessels in the setting of acute myocardial infarction
  • Coronary Thrombectomy - a procedure performed to remove thrombus (blood clot) from blood vessels.

Invasive procedures of the heart to treat arrhythmias are performed by specialists in clinical cardiac electrophysiology

Surgery of the heart is done by the specialty of cardiothoracic surgery. Some interventional cardiology procedures are only performed when there is cardiothoracic surgery expertise in the hospital, in case of complications.