St. Mary Medical Center is known as a leader in Bucks County for cardiovascular care. Doctors here offer some of the most advanced services available anywhere. Soon those doctors will have powerful new tools for treating heart disease with even greater precision.
It’s all part of the renovations that are set to take place at the St. Mary Heart & Vascular Center starting later this year.
Top tech
Most of the upgrades will happen in the cardiac catheterization (cath) labs. That’s where specialists use X-ray-guided catheters (thin tubes) to find and treat blocked arteries in the heart, legs or neck. Two examples are coronary angiogram and angioplasty to diagnose or treat heart disease or heart attacks.
St. Mary built its cath labs just over a decade ago. But medical technology is always changing, including the equipment doctors use to find and fix blocked arteries and blood vessels, notes Ronald Fields, MD, interventional cardiologist and medical director of the St. Mary Heart & Vascular Center.
“St. Mary offers state-of-the-art cardiac care. Patients can expect to receive not only the latest treatments but also individualized care and a patient-centered experience.”
—Karim Nathan, MD
Here are just a few of the planned upgrades:
- New imaging equipment that takes clearer images of blood vessels.
- Enhanced safety for patients and staff. The new imaging equipment reduces a patient’s exposure to X-ray energy by up to 67% for heart procedures and 83% for leg procedures. “You get clearer pictures with less X-ray,” Dr. Fields says.
- New equipment that can detect blockages in arteries too small to be seen. It does so by measuring the amount of blood that flows through these tiny vessels.
Other upgrades are planned for areas outside the cath labs. Among them: New 3-D echocardiography equipment. This advanced technology helps St. Mary doctors to diagnose and manage conditions such as congenital heart defects and heart valve disease. New interventional radiology equipment. This tool will assist doctors in treating a variety of medical conditions, such as kidney problems and cancer.
Generous gift helps expand care
St. Mary received a large gift from an anonymous donor to help pay for the upgrades. The upcoming renovations are part of St. Mary’s ongoing commitment to be the best in local heart care.
“Cardiovascular disease is still the No. 1 cause of death,” Dr. Fields says. “Advances in prevention are moving along quickly but not fast enough. The newer equipment will further enhance our ability to treat people with the most state-of-the-art means available.”