Cardiology Department set to provide new high-quality procedures

Last updated 10-Mar-10 14:54

National interest in the treatment of heart disease was given a boost throughout February by the British Heart Foundation's Heart Awareness Month. Members of the local community will be pleased to hear that Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals Cardiology Department are planning to introduce two new procedures this summer.

The first of these is known as ICD (Implantable Cardioverter-defibrillator) implantation. This involves implanting a small defibrillator under the skin, which is connected to the heart by leads. The device automatically monitors heart rhythm, detects when a patient is experiencing a sudden cardiac arrest, and delivers an electrical shock directly to the heart as needed to correct the problem.

The second of these new procedures is coronary angioplasty, which is used to treat narrowed heart arteries. This is done by inflating a balloon within the artery to crush fatty deposits.

As well as these procedures, the Cardiology Department will be increasing the number of research projects it undertakes in the next few months.

Deven Patel, Cardiology Consultant, said that: "with both of these services now being developed in local hospitals, further afield from the tertiary centres, it is a pleasure to introduce them to our Trust."