A new procedure
available at Advocate’s Christ Hospital and Medical Center now
offers some angina patients a low-risk alternative to invasive
treatments. Seven million Americans live with angina, or chest pain. It
is a symptom of an underlying disorder, which is almost always heart
disease or coronary artery disease. Angina occurs when the heart
isn’t getting enough oxygen because blocked or narrowed coronary
arteries are restricting the flow of blood. Usually angina is triggered
by physical exertion, when the heart’s need for oxygen rises. A
person with angina will feel a squeezing or burning sensation in the
chest, aches in the arms or a sharp pain in the jaw or neck. Sometimes
angina feels like indigestion.
“Individuals who experience angina often have difficulty
participating in the physical activities they enjoy, such as golfing,
gardening or even walking,” says Marc Silver, M.D., medical
director of the Heart Failure Institute at Christ Hospital. The
condition often can be treated with bypass graft surgery or angioplasty,
but some patients are not eligible for these procedures due to other
health conditions. That’s where EECP comes in.
“Enhanced external counterpulsation (EECP) is an outpatient
procedure that uses lower leg compression to help generate new blood
vessels in the heart, thus restoring the heart muscle with an increased
supply of blood and oxygen,” explains Dr. Silver. EECP requires the
patient to lay on a special bed with his or her legs wrapped in a series
of compressive air cuffs that inflate and deflate with the
patient’s heartbeat. During treatment, patients feel a slight
squeezing in their legs.
Patients undergoing the treatment must attend 35 one-hour treatment
sessions during seven weeks. “The therapy requires a big commitment
on the patient’s part, but patients may begin to feel relief after
only several treatments, so it’s worth it to them,” says Dr.
Silver. Completing the treatment may result in relief of angina and the
ability to enjoy a more active lifestyle.
If you experience chronic, stable angina, you may be eligible for
EECP. (Certain patients are not eligible for the procedure because of
their medical conditions.) For more information or a referral to the
Heart Failure Institute, talk to your doctor.
| 
