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Coronary angiography
With this method, the coronary arteries are examined with a contrast medium and X-rays.
For more information on coronary-angiography, see the document below.
Coronary angiography
Cardiac catheterization aims to determine if the causes of your symptoms, such as chest pain, tightness in the heart area, shortness of breath or water accumulation in the legs, are due to a disease /heart defect. These disorders can, for example, be due to diseases of the coronary arteries, heart valves or congenital heart defects.
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Only when the type and severity of the disease is known, it is possible to decide more precisely which course of treatment is indicated in your case or to be planned for later. This can help determine whether drug therapy, intervention (catheter intervention, eg, stent implantation) or surgery (eg, coronary bypass) are more appropriate for you. It may also turn out that your symptoms are not due to heart disease.
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The cardiac catheter is also used to prepare for an already planned surgery, for example before a heart valve replacement.
In emergency situations (eg myocardial infarction), the affected vessel, which is often obstructed, is reopened by cardiac catheterization and generally then protected by an endoprosthesis. To do this, a recanalization wire is first placed over the site of the occlusion, then the vessel is dilated using a balloon before a stent is implanted.
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The heart consists of a right half and a left half, and has a total of four cardiac chambers which perform different functions (see figure 2). Choosing which half of the heart to examine depends on your symptoms and the results available. The cardiac catheter makes it possible to measure the pressures at different places inside the heart and in the vessels close to the heart and, if necessary, to take small samples of blood in order to determine the oxygen saturation of the blood. These values allow, among other things, conclusions to be drawn about the functioning of the heart and heart valves.
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The left heart catheter is most often used to visualize and treat the coronary arteries. To examine the left heart, a fine catheter is inserted into an artery, usually in the right or left wrist (radial artery), after local anesthesia. In some cases, it is necessary to puncture the artery located under the fold of the groin (femoral artery).​
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If you have any further questions, please ask your treating cardiologist.
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