Cardiology
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Helping you have a healthier heart—that's the goal of every single cardiologist, heart surgeon and cardiac nurse at Emanate Health.
Reviewed 12/22/2020
Heart valve disease: An overview
Heart valve disease happens when one or more of the heart's four valves isn't working right.
Some people have heart valve disease that remains stable throughout their life and doesn't cause problems. But, for others, the problem slowly worsens. Left untreated, later-stage heart valve disease can lead to heart failure, stroke, blood clots or death due to sudden cardiac arrest.
Keep scrolling to learn more about the different types of heart valve disease.
HOW YOUR HEART VALVES WORK:
Your blood is supposed to flow one way through your heart. It enters through the top chambers, flows down to the bottom chambers and out to the rest of your body. This happens with every heartbeat. The heart valves are like gates that direct the traffic. They open—and quickly close—to let the blood keep flowing forward to its next destination.
Heart valve disease can stop that from happening.
The two main problems that can happen when heart valves are diseased or damaged are regurgitation and stenosis. It's possible for a valve to have both of these problems.
REGURGITATION (BACKFLOW):
This occurs when a valve doesn't close tightly. Blood leaks back into the chambers instead of flowing forward through or out of the heart. The heart has to work harder to pump the backflow. Over time, this can cause the overworked heart muscle to thicken. Backflow can also cause a buildup of fluid in the lungs.
STENOSIS:
Stenosis occurs when the flaps of a valve thicken, stiffen or fuse together. Stenosis can prevent a heart valve from opening all the way, which leads to not enough blood flowing through the valve.
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF HEART VALVE DISEASE:
Many people have heart valve disease without any symptoms.
When signs and symptoms occur, they commonly include:
- A heart murmur or unusual heartbeat. This is the main sign of heart valve disease.
- Shortness of breath during activity or when lying down.
- Extreme exhaustion or weakness.
- Dizziness or fainting.
- Fluttering or racing heartbeat.
TREATING HEART VALVE DISEASE:
No medicines can cure heart valve disease. But medicines and lifestyle changes can treat many of its symptoms and complications. And if heart valve disease worsens, surgery to replace or repair the heart valve can be effective.
If you have heart valve disease, your doctor will be able to help you decide on the treatment plan that's right for you.
How does your heart work?
Learn more about the structure of your heart and how it works.
Sources: American College of Cardiology; National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
One of the hallmarks of our exceptional heart care is our ability to provide world-class heart attack treatment. Our team can open a blocked artery within just 90 minutes of paramedics performing the first electrocardiogram in the field. That makes our heart attack treatment faster than any other hospital in the San Gabriel Valley. It's also earned us special designation as a STEMI (ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction) Receiving Center.
Here are some of the other services and facilities that make Emanate Health the right choice when you have a heart health need.
Cardiac catheterization is an imaging procedure that lets your cardiologist check your heart for any malfunctions or blockages, and plan the appropriate course of treatment. Our team has the experience that comes with performing more than 1,000 of these procedures every year.
The Emanate Health structural heart program helps repair structural problems in your heart. Our skilled cardiology team uses minimally invasive procedures that correct your heart problem without requiring open-heart surgery or temporarily stopping your heart.
Here are the common procedures we perform:
MitraClip
Otherwise known as transcatheter mitral valve repair (TMVR), MitraClip helps correct a malfunctioning mitral valve that's causing an abnormal backflow of blood in your heart. With MitraClip, a catheter is placed in a vein in your groin and ran up to the vein in your heart. A small clip is delivered through the catheter to the center of your mitral valve, which helps reduce the backflow of blood in your heart.
Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR)
This procedure treats aortic stenosis. When a person has aortic stenosis, their heart has to work harder to push blood through an abnormally small valve. TAVR alleviates symptoms by replacing a diseased aortic valve with an artificial one. To do so, a catheter is placed in the femoral artery and the new valve is delivered to the heart via the catheter. Once the valve is placed correctly, the catheter is removed and the insertion site is closed.
To learn more about the structural heart program, call 626.938.7586.
Emanate Health offers specialized testing that can pinpoint even the tiniest problems in your heart. In addition to the tests done in our cardiac catheterization lab, other specialized cardiac tests we offer include:
- Angiogram
- Echocardiogram
- Electrophysiology
- Holter monitors
- Intravascular ultrasound
- Nuclear cardiology
- Perfusion testing
- Pressure wire testing
- Stress testing
- Treadmill tests
The Emanate Health Heart Center's hybrid OR allows our cardiology team to perform both surgical and high-risk interventional procedures at the same time. Our hybrid OR contains advanced imaging systems in a traditional operating room—so we can switch from a minimally invasive procedure to open-heart surgery at a moment's notice.
Our Emanate Health Heart Center offers the only open-heart surgery program in the East San Gabriel Valley. Our specialized open-heart procedures include:
- Coronary artery bypass
- Endoscopic vein harvesting
- Specialized off-pump/beating heart open-heart surgery
- Valve repair/replacement
If you find yourself needing cardiac intervention or surgery, the Emanate Health's cardiac rehab program will help you with your recovery. From inpatient rehabilitation to outpatient exercise and education, we have all the tools to help you make the lifestyle changes needed to improve your health.
Here are some services the cardiac rehabilitation team offers:
- Exercise gym
- Nutritional guidance
- Physical and occupational therapy
- Stress management
- Support groups
Emanate Health Cardiology Outpatient Services
From diagnosis to rehabilitation and prevention, we are committed to helping patients maintain, enhance and take control of their health. Our cardiologists specialize in ongoing care and treatment for these and other common heart problems.
- Cardiac arrhythmia (atrial fibrillation)
- Cardiac heart failure (CHF)
- Coronary artery disease (CAD)
Emanate Health Cardiology
1135 S. Sunset Ave., Suite 401
West Covina, CA 91790
626.732.8390
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Schedule an appointment with one of our providers at Emanate Health Cardiology