Merit Health Wesley Unveils New Technology in Cardiac Catheterization Lab

Hattiesburg - Merit Health Wesley is celebrating Heart Month with the unveiling of an enhanced cardiac catheterization lab with high-end technology.

"This cath lab is built with modern technology that will allow us to offer our patients many types of procedures that we were not previously able to perform,” says interventional cardiologist Alan Covin, M.D., FACC.

According to the American Heart Association, heart disease remains the nation’s leading cause of death for men and women. A cardiac cath provides information on how well a patient’s heart works, identifies problems and allows for procedures to open blocked arteries and combat other forms of heart disease.

“In Mississippi, where the rates of heart disease surpass national averages, Merit Health Wesley is advancing the progress in fighting, diagnosing and treating heart disease through the technology and care provided to our patients,” says Dr. Covin.

The newly rebuilt cath lab is equipped with advanced imaging and computing instrumentation for both diagnostic and interventional procedures, which include coronary angiography, coronary angioplasty, and stent placement. The system allows advanced 3D imaging of the patient’s vessels during a cardiac procedure, which is then coupled with an intravascular ultrasound system that measures vessel size and can help physicians see small vessels better than conventional imaging technology. In addition, the new technology improves image quality while reducing radiation to the patient.

These improvements in vascular imaging will not only improve the care provided to patients but also allows the hospital to perform more complex and critical procedures. The cath lab will be particularly useful in expanding the hospital’s services to electrophysiology.

“This lab is ideal for electrophysiology and atrial ablation because the 3D imaging capability will allow for better visualization during these in depth, detailed procedures,” says Dr. Covin.

The Merit Health Wesley’s heart care team includes interventional cardiologists Alan Covin, M.D., Karl Duncan, M.D., Kurt Duncan, M.D., and cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Scott E. Henry, M.D., Ph.D.

Merit Health Wesley invested $1.6 million into the enhanced cath lab. For more information on cardiovascular services at Merit Health Wesley, visit our heart care page

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