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Noninvasive outpatient treatment Improves blood flow to the heart
By Robert Hamilton Nine months ago, Michael Fravel could not walk down the hall of his apartment building without having to stop midway for a rest. The 55-year-old Pompano Beach resident has battled heart disease for more than a decade.
All that changed when his cardiologist referred him to David Galbut, MD, chief of cardiac surgery at the South Miami Heart Center. Dr. Galbut implanted a defibrillator in Fravel’s heart and recommended that the undergo external counter pulsation (ECP) – a noninvasive outpatient treatment that improves blood flow to the heart. ECP is painless. A patient lies comfortably on a bed and has a series of cuffs (similar to large blood pressure cuffs) placed on the claves, thighs and buttocks. The ECP system then inflates and deflates these cuffs, moving blood from the limbs toward the heart. The machine times the inflation and deflation to the patient’s heart beat – ensuring that the heart receives increased blood flow when it is relaxing. Over time, blood circulation improves and sometimes the heart even develops new blood vessels. Fravel traveled more than an hour from his home to the hospital five days a week for seven weeks – the recommended course of treatment. Each session lasted approximately an hour. The ECP was easy to tolerate, even a bit relaxing, Fravel said. The machine’s rhythms are soothing and feel like a massage.
“I
slept through most of it,” Fravel said. He also found comfort
in the care and compassion of both Dr. Galbut and Pat Levin, RN, the
nurse who oversaw the treatment. “Both of them are fabulous
people. [They] went out of their way to make everything easy.”
The time investment proved well worth it. “My quality of life is
much, much better,” he said. “I have sustained energy which I did
not have before. It has brought back a lot of stamina.”He now
easily walks from the elevator down the hall to his apartment. “He is able to walk more comfortably,” said his wife, Annie Deutsch. “Many patients see such an improvement in their quality of life,” Dr. Galbut said. “They report that they have more energy and feel improved. ECP is a effective treatment for patients who have had several types of medical interventions and still suffer from angina and other debilitating symptoms.” *Click here to view article from South Miami News November 8-14, 2005.
ECP
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A new non-invasive treatment for angina is now available at
the South Miami Hospital. External CounterPulsation (ECP)
uses sequential compression of the lower extremities of the
body to stimulate the formation of blood vessels in the
heart. ECP therapy has proven to be useful in the treatment
of chronic (stable) chest pain and was recently approved as
a therapy for CHF.
ECP therapy does not require any type of anesthesia and generally feels like a vigorous massage. Repetitive treatments for one hour a day over a period of 35 days are thought to release naturally occurring growth factors, causing new blood vessels to grow around the blockages in the patient's arteries. Patients who undergo ECP report fewer angina attacks and the ability to resume physical activity. Published studies have demonstrated relief from angina pain and improvement in the oxygen-deprived areas of the heart in approximately 78 percent of stable angina patients. ECP therapy is now FDA-approved for the treatment of CHF. A diagnosis of CHF indicates that the heart cannot pump an adequate amount of blood throughout the body, causing shortness of breath and fatigue. CHF affects over 5 million Americans, with 500,000 new patients being diagnosed every year. Your physician can evaluate your condition and determine if you're a candidate for ECP. For a free brochure on ECP therapy, click here or call the Office of Dr. David L. Galbut and Dr. Naaman Abdullah at 305-674-7575 Click here Angionew ECP for more information. |
