For the first time in the CIS UMC specialists adapt the technology for the use of shock wave therapy for vascular calcification, DKnews.kz reports.
The improvement of methods for treatment of heart and vascular diseases increases the possibilities of providing care to patients with complex lesions. Atherosclerosis of the heart vessels is often complicated by the accumulation of both cholesterol and calcium compounds on their walls. This can significantly limit treatment options. One of the latest technologies that successfully destroy solid calcified compounds has become coronary intravascular lithotripsy, or shockwave. This modern method helps to crush calcium compounds using ultrasonic sensors, the size of which is so small that it is possible to bring them through the vessels, directly to the site of the calcified plaque. After this procedure, a stent is implanted in the patient.
“Shockwave therapy only affects solid deposits, without harming soft tissues. It is important to note that the calcium fragments themselves do not enter the lumen of the vessel and the bloodstream”, explained Marat Aripov, director of the Clinical and Academic Department of Interventional Cardiology and Radiology at UMC.
Previously, experts observed the use of intravascular lithotripsy in clinics in the United States. And in September, the Heart Center UMC team introduced this technology for the first time in the CIS. In two days, the clinic's medical team successfully performed 5 such procedures to patients who had been waiting for this technology for several months. The condition of all patients is satisfactory, and they continue to be monitored after discharge.
“In 2007, I underwent coronary artery bypass grafting in Almaty. And I felt good for 16 years. However, last year the first symptoms of the disease appeared, and an examination confirmed vascular calcification. I was one of the first to be offered treatment using the new technology, and, of course, I was a little worried. But everything went well, and I express my gratitude to the doctors and the entire staff of the UMC clinic, who are always ready to learn new things,” shared Shara Seilkhanova, patient of the clinic from Kyzylorda city.
