Interventional cardiology at Exeter Hospital

FAQs

• What's the difference between interventional cardiology and heart surgery?

  Interventional cardiology treats the heart and its surrounding vessels using catheters passed in through the wrist or groin, without opening the chest. Cardiac surgery involves an operation with an incision, sometimes to access the heart directly.

• How is the catheter inserted?

  It's usually passed in through a blood vessel at the wrist or groin, then guided up towards the heart using imaging to check its position along the way.

• What is a stent?

  A small mesh tube that can be placed inside an artery after it’s been widened, helping to keep it open afterwards.

• Can children have interventional cardiology procedures?

  Yes. Some interventional cardiologists specialise specifically in heart conditions affecting children, including congenital heart problems.

• What is TAVI?

  TAVI stands for transcatheter aortic valve implantation, a catheter-based way of replacing a narrowed aortic valve without open-heart surgery.

• Is interventional cardiology the same as interventional radiology?

  No, though the two are related. Interventional cardiology focuses specifically on the heart and its blood vessels, while interventional radiology covers image-guided procedures across many other parts of the body.