University of Maryland Shore Regional Health recently celebrated the opening of the newest cardiac catheterization laboratory at UM Shore Medical Center at Easton and the organization’s strides in bringing advanced cardiovascular interventions to the Mid-Shore, including Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI) and Electrophysiology Studies (EPS).
- Electrophysiology Studies (EPS) assess the electrical activity of the heart to determine where an arrhythmia (abnormal heartbeat) originates. Performed by inserting thin, soft wires (catheters) through the veins in the leg and into the heart.
- EPS results guide decisions regarding interventions, which could include medications, a pacemaker or implantable cardioverter (ICD) implantation or cardiac ablation, which is the elimination of abnormal tissue to restore regular heart rhythm.
- EPS is performed in the cardiac catheterization lab(s) at UM Shore Medical Center at Easton by cardiologist and EPS specialist, Benjamin Remo, MD.
- Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI), also commonly referred to as angioplasty with stent placement, is one of a number of treatments a cardiologist may recommend for coronary heart disease.
- PCI is a minimally invasive procedure during which the interventional cardiologist places a small structure (a stent) to open up blood vessels in the patient’s heart that have been narrowed by atherosclerosis (plaque buildup).
- PCI is also a procedure used to treat individuals experiencing a STEMI heart attack (ST Elevated Myocardial Infarction), a severe heart attack caused by blockage that can compromise heart muscle. A patient suffering a STEMI heart attack will have the best outcome if he or she undergoes the PCI procedure to relieve the blockage within 60 minutes of the attack’s onset or at the outside, 90 minutes.
- PCI is performed in the cardiac catheterization lab(s) at UM Shore Medical Center at Easton by interventional cardiologists, Jeffrey Etherton, MD, and Gabriel Sardi, MD. Combined, they have performed more than 4,000 PCI procedures in their careers.
Community Outreach
Jeffrey Etherton, MD, UM Community Medical Group – Cardiology and medical director, PCI Program at UM SRH, partnered with Cambridge cardiologist, Brendon Paltoo, MD, to offer a presentation to local physicians and UM SMC at Dorchester Emergency Department team members, highlighting cardiovascular capabilities in the region. During the presentation, Dr. Etherton offered a detailed explanation of PCI procedures and protocols.
Ribbon Cutting Event – May, 2017