Cardiac Catheterization

Leading advances in the study and repair of the heart and blood vessels

Cardiac catheterization is a minimally invasive way to diagnose and treat a variety of heart and vascular conditions by guiding thin, flexible tubes called catheters through blood vessels to problem areas. The experts in our Interventional Cardiology Program work out of multiple cardiac catheterization labs around the region that are staffed 24/7, meaning you can get treatment close to home.

We’re one of the region’s highest-volume centers for cardiac catheterizations, and our locations are typically among the first sites to evaluate new technology and techniques in this field. These procedures traditionally have been performed by threading the catheter through the groin, but our interventional cardiologists have been national leaders in adopting transradial catheterization, which uses an artery in the arm. In fact, about 80 percent of our cardiac catheterization procedures are now done this way.

The cath labs at two of our hospitals — MedStar Washington Hospital Center and MedStar Union Memorial Hospital — are hybrid labs, meaning they are fully equipped operating rooms. About 10 percent of patients who undergo cardiac catheterization need open-heart surgery. Thanks to these labs, if cardiac surgery becomes necessary, we won’t need to move you in the middle of a procedure. It also allows us to perform complex procedures that involve both cardiac catheterization and cardiac surgery.

Cardiac catheterization procedures allow us to:

• Measure pressure and blood flow in the heart’s chambers and blood vessels
• Open a narrowed or blocked blood vessel or heart valve
• Perform a biopsy on the heart muscle
• Repair or replace damaged blood vessels or heart valves

Types of cardiac catheterizations

Some of the diagnostic tests we perform through catheterization include:

• Angiography
• Fractional flow reserve
• Heart biopsies
• Intravascular ultrasound

Cardiac catheterization also allows us to treat certain conditions. Because it doesn’t require surgery, you recover faster, with less pain and few complications. Depending on the procedure, you may be able to go home the same day.

Some of the more common treatments we perform include:

• Angioplasty
• Atherectomy
• Balloon valvuloplasty
• Cardiac ablation
• Stenting
• Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR)

Treatments