Patent Foramen Ovale

Patent foramen ovale (PFO) is a defect in the septum of the wall of the heart that can allow blood debris to enter the brain, causing a stroke. Our articles below will help guide you through the catheterization procedures used to detect and treat patent foramen ovale.

Hot topics for 2006: Where to focus your attention Among the many new procedures confronting the cath lab staff is atrial septal defect (ASD)/patent foramen ovale (PFO) closure.

Structural Heart Disease Repair: A New Frontier for Interventionalists These are exciting times for interventionalists interested in exploring new territory. Once solely a surgical domain, structural heart disease repair is the new frontier for endovascular therapy.

Clinical and Industry News: Part II Clinical and Industry News: Part II Industry News: Clinical and Industry News: Part II - Genes Can Influence Where Plaque Happens in Heart Arteries Heredity sometimes influences where fatty deposits develop in a coronary artery, researchers reported. ? The new findings, if confirmed, could affect heart disease screening strategies for close relatives of coronary heart patients. Coronary heart disease at the point where the coronary arteries branch off from the aortic artery, as well as in ...

University Health System What is the size of your cath lab facility and number of staff members? University Health System (UHS) Cath Labs have 3 lab suites supported by 29 staff members, consisting of full-time and part-time clinical and non-clinical personnel. We have 14 registered nurses (RNs), 5 cardiovascular technologists (CVTs, 2 of whom carry the Registered Cardiovascular Invasive Specialist [RCIS] certification), 2 of whom carry the Registered Cardiovascular Invasive Specialist [RCIS] certification), 2 case manager RNs, 1 critical care technician, 1 administrative assistant, 1 operations manager, 1 inventory specialist, 1 data entry specialist and 1 data systems coordinator. University Hospital CCL staff range from 3 to 20-plus years of employment.

Condell Medical Center What is the size of your cath lab facility and number of staff members? Our facility currently has four cath labs, one of which is a swing lab. We have thirteen full-time staff members working in our cath labs (not counting prep/recovery staff). Currently on staff are: ? Two cardiovascular technologists (all with pending RCIS certifications); ? Three radiology technologists (RTs); ? Eight registered nurses (RNs).

The Indiana Heart Hospital What is the size of your cath lab facility and number of staff members? The Indiana Heart Hospital (TIHH), as part of the Community Health Network, has three cath lab sites with a total of 11 labs. TIHH is the flagship cardiology hospital for a large hospital network. We have four cardiac rooms, two electrophysiology (EP) rooms and one peripheral vascular (PV) room. There are two other hospitals in our network: Community South (CHS), with 2 cath labs, and Community East (CHE), also with 2 cath labs. These two hospitals allow TIHH to float staff between all three hospitals according to shifts in patient volume.

The Ten-Minute Interview with? Zokra Musovic, BS, RCIS, FSICP We are proud to introduce Zorka Musovic, the Treasurer of the Illinois Chapter of the Society of Invasive Cardiovascular Professionals (SICP). Zorka was also recently awarded Fellowship status with the SICP. Fellowship is bestowed upon those individuals who have made significant contributions to the SICP or the field of invasive/diagnostic cardiology. Additional requirement include having sat for and passed the Registered Cardiovascular Invasive Specialist (RCIS) examination, active status with the SICP and CCI (Cardiovascular Credentialing International) and a current staff position at a healthcare facility based in the cardiac cath lab or associated with an invasive cardiovascular technology program. ? SICP Journal Editor for Cath Lab Digest

Lahey Clinic What is the size of your cath lab facility and number of staff members? Our cardiac cath lab contains three brand new labs and a seven-bed holding unit. We have 13 RNs, 4 RTs and 2 CVTs, plus a number of per diem staff of various credentials.

Lancaster General Hospital What is the size of your cath lab facility and number of staff members? Currently, the cath lab facilities of Lancaster General Hospital are comprised of 3 multi-purpose procedure rooms (cath and intervention) and two pre-post procedure areas, one with 13 beds and one with 11 beds. We are not currently planning to expand the number of cath lab procedure rooms; however, we are planning to incorporate cardiac CT and cardiac MRI into our cardiovascular service (CV) line and then reassess our needs. Our team is comprised of 53 individuals:

Sunrise Hospital & Medical Center What is the size of your cath lab facility and number of staff members? We currently have three coronary intervention rooms, one pediatric bi-plane interventional room, one peripheral vascular suite, one interventional electrophysiology (EP) laboratory, and one implant room. In March of 2005, two new state-of-the-art flat-panel GE rooms (Waukesha, WI) were added, bringing our total labs to seven. The cath lab has over 40 employees: 17 RNs, 8 RCISs, 8 RTs, and 10 CVTs. To augment our service line, we have a clinical educator, inventory specialists, EP coordinator, cath lab aide, scheduler, and clerical support staff. Staff members have been with the cath lab for time periods ranging from one year to over thirty years. We also have a 28-bed recovery room that consists of approximately 35 staff members.