What is CARDIOLOGY?

• Non-valvular and structural heart disease: It includes all the structural abnormalities of the heart such as Atrial Septal Defect, Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy, Resistant Hypertension, and Patent Foramen Ovale.
• Coronary artery disease: It includes the disease or damage of the major blood vessels of the heart. The conditions are Cardiogenic Shock, Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection (a tear in a coronary artery that blocks or slows the blood flow), Heart attack, and Obstructed coronary artery disease.
• Valvular heart disease: The conditions related to abnormalities in heart valves such as Prosthetic valve failure, mitral valve regurgitation and stenosis, and Aortic Stenosis.

Diagnostic- The department offers a complete evaluation of all forms of cardiovascular problems before using the interventional cardiology approach for their treatment. The diagnostic interventional cardiology unit has high-end equipment and imaging techniques such as:

• Optical Coherence Tomography- It provides high-resolution detailed images of coronary arteries to check for the underlying reason for heart problems when complex angioplasties are carried out. 
• Computed Tomography imaging- It helps visualize the heart anatomy, great vessels, and coronary circulation using X-rays. 
• Intravascular Ultrasound- It checks for conditions of blood vessels like coronary arteries using sound waves. It is performed when there is a need for complex angioplasty. 
• 3D TransesophagealEchocardiography- It is done to assess the inside of the heart by taking comprehensive views of the congenital structural abnormalities and heart valves and their functioning by tracking the heartbeat.
• It performs diagnostic procedures such as cardiac catheterization (use of catheters) to visualize the left ventricle of the heart and coronary arteries to evaluate the extent of coronary artery disease

 Therapeutic- The surgeons or interventional cardiologists of the department perform minimally invasive procedures such as:

• FFR guided PCI: Fractional Flow Reserve- Guided Percutaneous Coronary Intervention is an invasive method to measure the maximum myocardial flow of blood in case of stenosis (narrowing of opening) in the epicardial coronary artery and compare it with the normal maximal blood flow. 
• Rotablation: This therapy is carried out to eliminate the cholesterol build-up in the blocked arteries with the help of a small rotating cutting blade device (called rotablation) and recondition the flow of blood inside or outside the heart.

• Dissection management- It involves the surgical removal of the dissected portion of the aorta, to prevent blood leaks.
• Carotid Stenting – It is performed to open the obstructed carotid artery using a catheter tipped with a balloon which is inflated as it gets inside the artery to push the plaque out.
• Aortoiliac Angioplasty or Percutaneous coronary intervention- It is performed to widen narrowed coronary with stents or balloons
• Treatment of birth defects such as repairing of ventricular and atrial septal defects (using a catheter to close the holes in between two heart chambers) and closure of patent foramen ovale (for preventing the recurrent stroke)
• Alcohol septal ablation- It is performed to treat Hypertrophic Obstructive Cardiomyopathy by inserting a catheter threaded to a balloon (which is inflated for temporary obstruction) inside the artery that supplies blood to the muscles of the heart. The alcohol is used to reduce the thickening of the septum by blocking the contraction of septal muscle cells and improve the blood flow.
• Left-atrial appendage closure- It is done for treating patients with atrial fibrillation which leads to the formation of blood clots especially in the left atrial appendage. This pouch of the left atrium is closed with a device to avoid dislodging of clots until they are completely dissolved by anticoagulants.
• Balloon atrial/mitral valvuloplasty- It is used to treat a severe form of aortic and mitral stenosis.

The cardiac care facilities available under the cardiology department includes:

• Cardiac catheterization labs: The Department is backed by many hardware devices such as intravascular ultrasound, rotablation (used in hardened arteries to remove calcium), optical coherence tomography (used to image coronary arteries), fractional flow reserve (to find the ratio enter the maximum amount of blood possible). flow in diseased coronary arteries and the theoretical normal value of a healthy coronary artery) and intravascular lithotripsy (used to treat calcified arteries using pressure wave energy).  
• Nuclear cardiology unit: latest equipment, such as a gamma camera for SPECT (single photon emission computed tomography) scans for the precise detection of abnormal myocardial blood flow and stroke; PET (positron emission tomography) to check blood flow to the heart; Cardiac magnetic resonance; MIBG scans (to look for vascular tumors); and renal perfusion scans (to check for obstruction of blood flow to the kidney).
• Paediatric cardiology unit: Pediatric cardiologists diagnose, treat, and monitor heart problems in children. Pediatric cardiologists at the BM Birla Heart Research Centre specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of heart problems in children. Several heart conditions can affect children, and some are born with structural heart problems during childbirth. Treatment of congenital heart defects, holes between the chambers of the heart, valve problems and abnormal blood vessels is carried out by the doctors at BM Birla Heart Research Centre. Our pediatric cardiologists are specialists in diagnosis and treatment of heart problems in children. They offer the best treatment for treating heart problems in children, including congenital heart disease, the holes between the chambers of the heart, abnormal blood vessel and valve problems, and arrhythmias (irregular heartbeats). 
• Interventional cardiology unit: It involves all the non-surgical procedures to treat coronary heart disease, structural heart diseases, and valvular heart diseases. Some of the minimally-invasive procedures are carotid stenting, Aortoiliac Angioplasty, FFR guided PCI, Dissection management, Aortic Aneurysm, and Rotablation. This unit is equipped with cutting-edge technologies and imaging techniques like OCT, TEE, IVUS, and CT scans.
• Valvular interventions: This includes the less invasive treatment of aortic stenosis using transcatheter aortic valve implantation. 
• Interventions of structural cardiac diseases: This unit covers a variety of cardiac procedures for congenital defects and acquired heart disease, including arterial and venous blockages, septal defects, and fistulas. It includes most minimally invasive cardiac surgeries performed to treat a wide variety of heart conditions, either with the help of robotic arms and precise imaging, or with a thoracoscope with a camera.  

BM Birla Heart Hospital provides world-renowned cardiovascular care for adults and children with heart diseases and disorders. It is one of the leading cardiac hospital in India focused on improving the health and well-being of its patients by providing the best care and treatments.
Cardiologists and cardiac surgeons at BM Birla Heart Hospital are leaders in the field and highly specialized in diagnosing, treating, and managing a wide range of cardiovascular conditions. The experts offer the highest quality of personalized, patient-centred care to deliver an excellent level of patient satisfaction.
Schedule an appointment with the best cardiac surgeons and cardiologists at BM Birla Heart Hospital to get specialized care and treatment for heart disease and problems.