Cardiac Catheterization

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Test Overview

Cardiac catheterization is a test to check your heart and coronary arteries. It is used to check blood flow in the coronary arteries , blood flow and blood pressure in the chambers of the heart , find out how well the heart valves work, and check for defects in the way the wall of the heart moves. In children, this test is used to check for heart problems that have been present since birth (congenital heart defect).

If your coronary arteries are blocked, your doctor can use a thin flexible tube (catheter), guidewire, and balloon to open them and improve blood flow to your heart. This is called percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). The three common types of PCI are:

• Angioplasty. This may be done by attaching a small balloon to the catheter. Once the catheter has been guided to the proper location in a coronary artery, the balloon is inflated. The pressure from the inflated balloon presses the plaque against the wall of the artery to improve blood flow. See an illustration of angioplasty .
• Stenting, which usually is done along with angioplasty. Once the plaque is compressed using angioplasty, a small expandable wire tube called a stent is inserted into the artery to hold it open. Reclosure of the artery is less likely to occur after angioplasty followed by stenting than after angioplasty alone. This is the most common procedure performed.
• Atherectomy. This may be done during cardiac catheterization to open a partially blocked coronary artery. Once the catheter reaches the narrowed portion of the artery, a cutting device, a whirling blade (such as a rotoblade), or a laser beam is used to remove the plaque.

These procedures can be done separately or in combination.

The purpose of cardiac catheterization is to find out if you have disease in your coronary arteries and, if so, pinpoint the size and location of fat and calcium deposits (plaque) that may have built up in your coronary arteries from atherosclerosis. This is generally done to determine whether you may need bypass surgery or angioplasty.

Other tests can be done during cardiac catheterization to find heart problems. An X-ray test called a ventriculogram measures how well blood flows through the left side of your heart. The test looks at the movements of the wall of the left ventricle and the heart valves.

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Last updated:	October 06, 2005
Author:	Sydney Youngerman-Cole, RN, BSN, RNC
Reviewed By:	Caroline S. Rhoads, MD - Internal Medicine, Stephen Fort, MD, MRCP, FRCPC - Interventional Cardiology
Editors:	Susan Van Houten, RN, BSN, MBA, Tracy Landauer