Specialties & Services

Interventional Cardiology

Our highly trained interventional cardiologists have the skills and experience to care for rare and complex heart conditions. Our range of minimally invasive procedures means you have more options when it comes to treatment.

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Why choose us for interventional cardiology?

BJC HealthCare works with WashU Medicine physicians, BJC Medical Group, and providers across the region to deliver extraordinary care. We’re known as a leader in the Midwest for minimally invasive heart treatments.

When you choose our care team you’ll find:

  • Pioneers in interventional cardiology: We were the first in Missouri to perform transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), a groundbreaking procedure for heart valve disease. Our cardiologists are consistently at the forefront of the latest interventions for heart disease.
  • High volumes, more experience: We have one of the highest-volume cardiac catheterization labs in the region. We’re qualified to diagnose and care for complex forms of heart disease, even if previous therapies have failed.
  • Focus on structural heart disease: Our interventional cardiologists specialize in heart valve disease, adult congenital heart disease, and other conditions affecting your heart’s structure. We offer minimally invasive alternatives to traditional open-heart surgery.
  • Team approach: Interventional cardiologists coordinate your treatment with experts in cardiology, interventional radiology, heart surgery, electrophysiology, and other specialty areas, as needed. You receive all the care you need under one roof.

What is interventional cardiology?

Interventional cardiology is a subspecialty of cardiology. It uses minimally invasive procedures to diagnose and treat heart disease. Specially trained cardiologists use catheters (long, thin tubes) and special instruments to treat heart conditions without open-heart surgery.

We perform these procedures, called cardiac catheterization (cath), on an outpatient basis. You usually go home the same day.

Your doctor makes a tiny incision into a blood vessel, usually in your groin or wrist, in a cardiac cath procedure. They insert the catheter into the vessel and guide it to the area of your heart that needs treatment.

Benefits of cardiac catheterization include:

  • Faster recovery
  • Less pain
  • Reduced bleeding or scarring
  • Usually, no hospital stay
  • Decreased risk of complications

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Our highly trained team of specialists offers advanced treatments as well as compassionate, personalized care.

Interventional cardiology testing and treatments

Our interventional cardiologists perform cardiac catheterizations to diagnose and treat heart conditions. In many cases, we can evaluate and treat the issue during the same procedure.

Procedures performed by our interventional cardiologists include:

Coronary angiography

 Checks your coronary arteries (blood vessels that carry blood to your heart) for blockages, damage, or blood clots.

Intracoronary doppler assessment

 Measures blood flow through your heart's arteries to check for stenosis (narrowing).

Intravascular ultrasound

 Also called ultrasound angiography, uses a catheter with ultrasound to create images of the inside of your blood vessels.

Left ventriculography

 Uses X-rays to create moving pictures of the chambers and valves on the left side of your heart.

Optical coherence tomography (OCT)

 Uses light to create detailed images of the inside of blood vessels. We examine plaque buildup and clots or measure your blood vessels.

Right heart catheterization

 Checks for signs of pulmonary hypertension, which is high blood pressure in the arteries that carry blood from your heart to your lungs.

Angioplasty and stenting

 Uses a catheter to expand a tiny balloon inside a narrowed blood vessel. Next, we implant a stent (mesh tube) in the blood vessel to hold it open.

Alcohol septal ablation

 Interventional cardiologists use alcohol to shrink areas where your heart muscle is too thick due to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

Atherectomy

 Minimally invasive procedure used to shave away plaque inside narrowed arteries. It helps restore blood flow.

Closures for abnormal openings

 Used to treat patent foramen ovale and septal defects, which are holes between your heart's chambers.

Minimally invasive mitral valve repair

 Treats mitral valve regurgitation by repairing the leaky valve with special clips. The procedure can help prevent heart failure.

Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR)

 During TAVR surgery, interventional cardiologists place an artificial valve inside your narrowed aortic valve.

Valvuloplasty

 Widens narrowed blood vessels by using a catheter to inflate a small balloon inside the vessel.

Heart pumps

 Interventional cardiologists use catheters to place small devices inside your heart to help it pump blood more efficiently.

Thrombectomy

 Uses endovascular techniques to remove blood clots from inside blood vessels to prevent stroke.

Tricuspid valve care

 Transcatheter tricuspid valve replacement (TTVR) and transcatheter edge-to-edge repair (T-TEER) offered to treat tricuspid valve conditions.

Locations

Medical Arts Specialists at Parkland Health Center

1103 W. Liberty St.
Farmington, MO 63640
573-756-6751 More about Medical Arts Specialists at Parkland Health Center

WashU Medicine Cardiology at Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital

1020 North Mason Road Suite 100
Creve Coeur, MO 63141
314-362-1291 More about WashU Medicine Cardiology at Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital

WashU Medicine Cardiology at Barnes-Jewish Hospital Center for Outpatient Health

4901 Forest Park Ave.
St. Louis, MO 63108
314-454-8181 More about WashU Medicine Cardiology at Barnes-Jewish Hospital Center for Outpatient Health