Construction Zone

Community Hospital opens cardiac cath lab

Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula has opened an important new asset for the community — a diagnostic cardiac cath lab. The lab is the first phase of a three-phase cardiovascular services project at Community Hospital that will include cardiovascular and open-heart surgery sometime in 2006.

The new cardiac cath lab allows Monterey Peninsula residents access to a diagnostic coronary artery angiogram service for the first time at Community Hospital. The $2-million addition provides an environment for cardiologists to diagnose patients’ coronary arteries without having to transfer them to a healthcare facility off the Peninsula.

In a diagnostic cardiac catherization, the cardiologist inserts a tiny catheter (tube) into a patient’s artery. The catheter is guided by the cardiologist, with the assistance of multimillion-dollar imaging equipment, to the patient’s heart. Once the proper position is secured, the cardiologist and cath lab staff inject a small amount of dye to allow the arteries to become visible on a moving X-ray. In addition, the internal pressure and structure of the heart’s valves and chambers can be seen and measured. Many people call this procedure a “heart cath.”

A heart cath is considered the gold standard for accurately measuring the presence or absence of heart disease. Patients are referred to this procedure by their family doctor, who will collaborate with a specialist to schedule a procedure.

The hours of operation for the cath lab are 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

For more information, call 625-4848.