Good News
Bon Secours Heart Institute Takes Care of the Community’s Heart
When you think of keeping your heart healthy, what comes to mind? Finding the best cardiologist in the area? Changing your diet and exercise plan? Learning how to prevent heart disease? Dedicated to providing high quality cardiovascular and thoracic care, Bon Secours Heart and Vascular Institute also educates the community on how to reduce the risks of heart disease.
Institute offers care and convenience.
Bon Secours Heart and Vascular Institute was established in November 2005 through a partnership with Columbia University. According to cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr. Robert Dunton, medical director of the Institute, the staff regularly meets with Columbia physicians to improve and expand treatment. Dr. Kevin Shortt, cardiac and thoracic surgeon, says the institute provides a cluster of physicians all located in the same place and all focused on cardiac care. This not only results in better care but also eliminates the need for patients to go from facility to facility for doctors’ visits, lab work, and surgeries.
Heart valve surgeries are on the rise at the Heart Institute.
Dr. Dunton is seeing a large increase in heart valve surgeries. He says, “Technology is better so people are getting surgery earlier and as a result, they are living longer. We are often able to repair the patient’s own valve and can repair valves with a higher level of efficiency.” He adds, “As good as the new valves are, it is still better if the patient’s own valve can be repaired rather than replaced with synthetic valves.”
Some patients benefit from “off pump” bypass surgery.
In addition to valve surgery, Dr. Dunton notes that some patients need bypass surgery. Heart Institute surgeons offer a technique called “off pump” bypass surgery. In the off pump bypass, the surgery is performed on a beating heart so the heart-lung machine is not used. With the heart-lung machine, the patient’s heart is temporarily stopped and the heart-lung machine supports the patient’s circulation while the surgeon operates. The method used depends on the patient’s needs.
Bon Secours educates the community.
Dr. Dunton says, “We conduct heart health awareness programs to educate people, especially women, and we are presenting programs where women undergo screening to detect heart disease. As they leave the event, they are handed a packet containing their individual screening results. We are getting the word out in the community.”
“We take care of our patients with heart.”
Dr. Shortt says, “Bon Secours really tries to put patients at the center and care for the person as a whole. If we do anything, we definitely try to take care of patients as if they are a part of our family. In addition to caring for the patient, we realize the need to build a relationship with the family because in many ways we care for them, too.” Dr. Shortt summarizes, “We take care of our patients with heart.”
Dr. Dunton says, “Our program continues to grow. We have attracted very good staff members and had very good patient outcomes during our four years in existence.”
Is Your Heart All A-flutter? See Your Doctor.
Remember that feeling you had when you first had to stand in front of a class to give a book report — that uneasy feeling that your heart was turning flip-flops? Or maybe it was when you spotted the love of your life and your heart skipped a beat. Or maybe it was when you were simply sitting in a chair watching television and you felt a pounding in your chest. Caused by irregular heartbeats, those strange sensations can bring an element of fear, but are they dangerous?
Irregular heartbeats are one of the leading causes of death.
According to Dr. Ryan Seutter, an electrophysiologist with Bon Secours Cardiac Specialists, irregular heartbeats are one of the leading causes of death. He says, “Almost everyone has irregular heartbeats, even healthy people.” Whether they are dangerous or not depends on the history and origin. A physician has to determine the underlying cause.
Dr. Seutter says there are different types of irregular heartbeats and he treats all kinds.
• Less dangerous originate in the upper heart chamber
• More dangerous originate in the lower heart chamber
Dr. Seutter tells how the parts of the heart work together: “Everything is connected — electrical, muscle and plumbing. The electrical system sends impulses that make our heart beat, the muscle pumps the blood, and the plumbing circulates the blood through our body.” The origin of an irregular heartbeat requiring treatment is usually an area of tissue within the heart where the electrical system was short-circuited.
How are irregular
heartbeats treated?
Irregular heartbeats are often treated with ablation. Ablation is a technique where high-frequency electrical energy is delivered through a catheter inside the heart to the area causing the abnormal rhythm. Dr. Seutter compares the procedure to “a surgery inside out.”
New ablation lab opens at Bon Secours Heart Institute.
Dr. Seutter recently installed a new ablation lab at Bon Secours Heart and Vascular Institute to treat irregular heartbeats. The ablation lab is equipped with special computers that create a three dimensional map of the heart. The physician inserts a catheter through the patient’s groin to locate the origin while watching LCD screens. When the origin is located, the doctor heats the tissue to form a scar, eliminating the abnormal electrical signal and irregular heartbeat.
How can you prevent the occurrence of irregular heartbeats?
The best way to prevent irregular heartbeats is to eat healthy and exercise. Dr. Seutter advises, “Control your blood pressure. High blood pressure makes the heart work harder with every beat.” He advises, “If you are having heart palpitations, see your doctor.”