artery blockage

I am 59 years old and suffer from chest pain while walking. A doctor advised coronary angiography. The test has shown that I have blockages in the coronary arteries, which supply blood to the heart muscles. I have been told to undergo a bypass surgery. Is surgery absolutely necessary? Can medicines cure me? Please advise.

Not all patients with narrowing (blockage) of coronary arteries need to undergo surgery. Whether surgery is needed or not depends on the number, severity and locations of the blockages. A coronary bypass surgery may be necessary either for relief from persisting chest pains or to improve prognosis (reducing the risk of death). If your doctor has suggested bypass surgery, it’s because he feels that medicines alone may not be adequate in your case. In some cases, coronary angioplasty (where the narrowed artery is opened up with a balloon) may be an alternative to surgery.

rheumatic heart

I am a 42-year-old woman. I have a rheumatic heart and one of the valves has become narrow. Is there any treatment other than replacing the valve?

Penicillin injections are given to most patients with rheumatic hearts every three weeks to prevent the disease’s progression. Some other medicines may also be necessary for controlling the symptoms. But if your valve is critically diseased, you have to go for an operation soon. First, it’s important to identify the narrowed valve and the degree of the disease. It’s also important to know your present level of symptoms. Although in many cases a surgical replacement of the valve is the only option, it may be possible to repair the valve during open-heart surgery. Also, in certain cases, surgery may not be necessary and the valve may be opened up by the help of a balloon passed through the skin into a vein at your groin. The procedure is known as valvuloplasty. It is painless and done under local anaesthesia.

heart failure

I am 65 years old. I had a heart attack seven years ago. I do not suffer from chest pain anymore, but get breathless even if I take a few steps. My doctor says I have heart failure (a condition where the heart is unable to pump adequate blood to the rest of the body). Now, I have to take eight different medicines daily. Is there any alternative treatment?

Medicines are essential in your condition, and in many cases, they alone can control the symptoms. Certain tests like echocardiography, coronary angiography and viability study may be necessary to determine whether other kinds of treatments may be beneficial for you. Depending on the results, your doctor will be able to advise whether you are likely to benefit from a coronary bypass surgery or from an implantation of a special pacemaker-like device known as cardiac resynchronisation therapy. These devices not only reduce breathlessness, but also prolong the survival of cardiac patients.

palpitations

I am 33 years old and suffer from frequent palpitations. A doctor says I have Woolf-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome. Is there any cure for this disease?

Electrical circuits within the heart ensure its rhythmical beating. In WPW syndrome, a patient has an extra electrical pathway within the heart. This leads to abnormal conduction of electrical impulses resulting in palpitations. This condition can be cured by inserting special catheters through the groin to locate the additional pathway and destroying it. The procedure is known as radio frequency (RF) ablation (surgical removal). It is painless, done under local anaesthesia and you may be discharged from the hospital the very next day.