Cardiac Catheterization

Experts in Heart Catheterization

At UMass Memorial Health, highly skilled interventional cardiologists use cardiac catheterization to diagnose and treat problems with your heart and blood vessels. Our state-of-the-art cardiac catheterization lab is the only one of its kind in Central Massachusetts and beyond. We use the latest imaging technology to guide catheter-based tests and therapies. You get the care you need without an invasive procedure. 

What Is Cardiac Catheterization?

During cardiac catheterization, we thread a catheter (thin, flexible tube) through an artery or vein that leads to your heart. In most cases, we can insert the catheter through a blood vessel in your wrist. This radial approach is less painful and requires less downtime than inserting a catheter through a vein in your groin (femoral approach). 

Diagnostic cardiac catheterizations help us:

• Evaluate how well your heart is pumping blood
• Look for blockages in your blood vessels
• Monitor the electrical activity of your heart
• Take a sample of tissue for a biopsy

Therapeutic cardiac catheterization allows us to:

• Clear blockages from arteries
• Fix congenital heart defects
• Implant devices to open blood vessels
• Repair or replace heart valves
• Treat heart rhythm disorders

Catheter-Guided Coronary Interventions 

We use cardiac catheterization to treat coronary artery disease (CAD) as well as many other heart and vascular conditions. CAD occurs when plaque (fatty deposits) builds up in your arteries, blocking blood flow to your heart. A percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) can ease symptoms such as angina (chest pain) or shortness of breath. It can also prevent the need for coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery. 

Our coronary interventions include:

• Balloon angioplasty: We thread a balloon to a blocked artery. The balloon widens the artery walls to allow blood into the heart.
• Angioplasty with stenting: Balloon angioplasty may also involve a stent (mesh tube). We implant the stent in your artery to hold it open.
• Rotational atherectomy: We use a drill with a special tip to grind away hard, dense plaque inside your coronary arteries.
• Laser angioplasty: If you aren’t a candidate for balloon angioplasty, we offer an advanced procedure that uses a laser to vaporize blockages in the arteries.
• Impella-assisted PCI: High-risk patients may need mechanical circulatory support during a coronary intervention. We use the Impella heart pump to maintain blood flow during their procedure.

Regional Leaders in Heart Catheterization

UMass Memorial Medical Center has a 4-star rating, the highest possible, for percutaneous coronary intervention from the American College of Cardiology’s National Cardiovascular Data Registry.