“THINK ANGIOPLASTY! THINK IVUS!”

Treatment of heart diseases has evolved to a great extent over the years. Right from the era of balloon angioplasty to stent angioplasty, our understanding of Coronary arteries has come a long way. This better understanding of the Coronaries is worthwhile only when it benefits the patient in the form of a long disease-free life.

In a time of advanced technology, IVUS is one of the latest techniques in the world of Cardiology. IVUS stands for IntraVascular Ultrasound. In simple words it is sonography of your Coronary arteries but from the inside. In this technique, a tiny sonography probe is inserted in the blood vessels of your heart using a catheter. This small probe acts as a camera and gives pictures of your artery at different locations from the inside.

IVUS allows your cardiologist to accurately measure the size of the blood vessels, and the extent of the blockage. It also provides information about what the plaque/blockage is made up of (fat, fibrosis, blood clot, or calcium). IVUS helps to precisely plan the strategy to remove the blockage from blood vessels. After inserting the stent in angioplasty, IVUS can ascertain proper stent expansion and apposition to the blood vessel wall from the inside.

Scientific trials have proved that IVUS-guided angioplasty has fewer complications and better long-term outcomes when compared to angioplasty without IVUS.

IVUS does not use ionizing contrast medium(dye) and so can be used safely in all types of patients. It significantly reduces the use of dye used in angioplasty. This is of great importance in patients with kidney diseases and in patients with reduced heart function. So IVUS-guided angioplasty has a distinct advantage in these patients.

Hence to summarize IVUS enables making angioplasty safer by proper planning and achieving long-term stent patency through proper stent placement. So it is indeed wise to say “THINK ANGIOPLASTY! THINK IVUS!”

Dr Rhishikesh Umalkar
DM cardiology (Gold Medalist)

Ganeshaa Heart Care Centre
Trinity Hospital, Nagpur.

M: 85112 72373