Cardiac Sciences

One of the leading referral centres for complex cardiac diseases, Ludhiana Mediways is a pioneer in the field of cardiac sciences.

What is Cardiac Sciences?

A person who exhibits symptoms of heart disease, such as chest pain, dizziness, change in heart rate, shortness of breath, and high blood pressure, should consult their doctor immediately.

Adult Cardiac Surgery

Patients over 16 years of age are eligible for adult cardiac surgery. Sometimes, when blood vessels become hardened, the coronary arteries can narrow. This complication is treated with cardiac surgery along with other complications, such as calcification, stretching, leakage, infection, or rheumatic heart disease. There are several types of cardiac surgery. Some of them include:

The procedure of coronary artery bypass grafting : As a result of atherosclerosis (thickening and hardening of arteries), coronary arteries provide the heart with energy to pump blood throughout the body. When these arteries narrow, the blood flow is restricted. The affected artery is bypassed during surgery by taking an artery from another part of the body and attaching it to the affected artery. This allows the blood to flow freely.
Surgery to replace a valve : The heart contains four valves that control the flow of blood, ensuring it moves in a single direction. When these valves become leaky or narrow, they can impede or alter blood flow. In situations like this, a valve replacement surgery is necessary to replace the affected valve with an artificial one. These artificial options may include a bioprosthesis composed of human cadaver or animal tissue, or a mechanical valve made from carbon and metal.

Pediatric Cardiac Surgery

For children, cardiac surgery is a common means of addressing Congenital Heart Defects (CHD), or defects present at birth. In some cases, a child may develop heart disease after birth. Regardless of the cause, cardiac surgery is an important and necessary treatment option. However, due to safety reasons, it may be necessary for a child to wait until they are older before undergoing surgery. This waiting period can last for months or even years. Occasionally, if the heart defect is severe, immediate surgery may be required after birth. Comprehensive heart defects can occur in both the blood vessels outside the heart and within the heart itself. To treat these defects in children, there are three main techniques available:

Open Heart Surgery : An open heart surgery involves the use of a heart-lung bypass machine. After general anesthesia, the child is incised through the sternum or breastbone. Tubes are attached to the bypass machine to reroute the blood. When the heart is repaired, the machine is removed and the heart is restarted. The incision is closed and the treatment is complete. This machine takes over the heart’s responsibilities while the heart is being treated.
Thoracotomy/ Closed Heart Surgery : A camera is used to complete the surgery, which involves making an incision between the ribs on the side of the chest.
Tubes : Tubes are inserted into an artery in the leg, then slowly moved up to the heart. However, this technique is only appropriate for treating small defects.

Adult Cardiology

This branch of medicine deals with disorders of the heart and circulatory system. Some of its categories are:

Electrophysiology of the heart : In addition to diagnosing and treating arrhythmias, it is also used to analyze abnormal electrocardiograms, clarify symptoms, and evaluate complex arrhythmias. Electrophysiology procedures include radiofrequency ablation, cryoablation, pacemaker implantation, anti-arrhythmic drug therapy, etc.
Echocardiography : By using 2D, 3D, and Doppler ultrasound, images of the heart are generated. For diagnosing heart disease, it provides information on shape, size, location, pumping capacity, damage extent, and heart functions, such as cardiac output, diastolic function, and ejection fraction. Since no skin is broken, this procedure does not have any side effects. It can be used to detect dilated cardiomyopathy, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, etc.

Pediatric Cardiology

The founder of Pediatric Cardiology, Helen B. Taussig, worked with children with a condition called Tetralogy of Fallot, which causes cyanosis, a bluish tint. Pulmonary Atresia, Ebstein’s Anomaly, Transposition of the great arteries, and double outlet right ventricles are among the other conditions that affect newborns.

The Fallot tetralogy : The deoxygenated blood bypasses the lungs due to an overriding aorta and Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD). It is usually treated with a modified Blalock-Taussig Shunt.
Pulmonary Atresia : The aorta branches out of the right ventricle, preventing deoxygenated blood from entering the lungs. Surgery is used to redirect the aorta and fix the right ventricle.

Thoracic Surgery

The chest organs include the heart, the lungs, and the oesophagus, and it treats pulmonary diseases, trauma, and even cancer. Among thoracic surgery’s procedures are heart and lung transplants, removal of cancerous parts of the lungs, and coronary artery bypass surgery.

1. Minimally Invasive Surgeries:

Video-Assisted Thoracic Surgery (VATS)
Thoracic robotic surgery

2. Open Surgeries:

The thoracotomy

Pediatric Thoracic Surgery

In addition to treating injuries and diseases in the abdomen and neck area, this surgery also involves complex aneurismal and renovascular diseases. If there is a tumour or abnormality present at birth, the surgery can remove it.

Pediatric Vascular Surgery

In vascular surgery, venous, arterial and lymphatic systems, including coronary arteries and intracranial arteries, are diagnosed and treated.

Electrophysiology

This branch of physiology deals with the ion flow in the tissues. Basically, it measures the flow of the ions using electrical recording techniques. Traditionally, electrodes have been placed in the tissues. They may consist of solid conductors, hollow tubes with electrolytes or circuit board tracings.