Cardiology

We were the first hospital in South Texas to be named a National Distinction of Excellence HeartCARE Center, and the first hospital in San Antonio to earn The Joint Commission's Gold Seal of Approval® for Chest Pain. Additionally, we have also received the American College of Cardiology's (ACC) NCDR Chest Pain – MI Registry Platinum Performance Achievement Award. These designations illustrate the high level of care we are able to offer you, with a variety of innovative and advanced cardiovascular treatments and diagnostics at our disposal.

Our hospital also has a dedicated cardiovascular emergency department, The Center for Advanced Cardiac Care, equipped with leading-edge technology and 24/7 staff. The full range of services these dedicated professionals offer includes:

• Cardiac catheterization
• Cardiac imaging
• Cardiac surgery
• Cardiothoracic surgery
• Diagnostic peripheral vascular
• Diagnostic procedures
• Electrophysiology
• Inpatient cardiac rehabilitation
• Interventional cardiac care
• Peripheral vascular intervention
• Patent foramen ovale/atrial septal defect closure devices
• Preventative cardiology
• Pulmonary medicine
• Structural heart procedures, including implants to reduce stroke risk
• Thoracic endovascular aortic repair/endovascular aneurysm repair
• Thoracic surgery
• Vascular screening
• Vascular surgery

Our cardiac imaging center offers cardiac positron emission tomography (PET) scans and interventional cardiology for complex procedures. Our inpatient and outpatient heart care specialists and cardiologists strive to provide comfortable, expert care to prevent, diagnose and treat a range of heart-related conditions.

• Atrial septal defect (ASD) and patent foramen ovale (PFO) closures — Minimally invasive alternative to surgery to close holes found in the heart's atria (upper chambers), which could have developed in the womb or failed to close after birth
• Impella placement — A temporary heart pump for patients receiving PCI for severe coronary artery disease
• Intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) placement — An inflatable device that helps pump blood throughout your body
• Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) — Procedures to open up coronary arteries that have narrowed as a result of plaque buildup, which can cause heart attacks
• Peripheral vascular disease (PVD) management — A number of treatment options to address blood flow issues in arteries and veins

Methodist Hospital Texsan is proud to offer vascular screening services for our community. In one simple and quick appointment, you can find out whether you are at risk of some of the most common types of vascular disease, including carotid artery disease, abdominal aortic aneurysm and peripheral arterial disease.

A vascular screening uses ultrasound imaging to take a look at how well blood is flowing through your blood vessels. Ultrasound uses sound waves to create an image – it’s painless, fast, and uses no radiation. During the vascular screening, you’ll also have your blood pressure taken in both arms and both legs, to see how well blood is flowing in your limbs. The whole test takes just 15 to 20 minutes from the time you check in. You don’t even need to change out of your clothes.

There are three steps to a vascular screening:

• An ultrasound of your neck to check the blood flow in your carotid arteries
• An ultrasound of your belly to check your aorta, the biggest blood vessel in your body
• An ankle-brachial index, which compares the blood pressure in your ankles to the blood pressure in your arm

Cardiovascular disease affects almost half of all adults in the U.S., according to the American Heart Association. While you may know about the risk of heart disease, vascular disease, which can affect blood vessels throughout the body, can be just as dangerous. The vascular screening checks for signs of three major types of vascular disease:

• Abdominal aortic aneurysm — A balloon-like bulge in your body’s largest blood vessel, which could burst
• Carotid artery disease — Reduced blood flow in your neck, which may lead to a stroke
• Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) — This condition can make it hard for your body to pump blood to your legs and feet, raising the risk of damage or amputation

Getting a vascular screening can help you find out if you’re at risk for any of these conditions. This information can help you get treatment, if you need to. Knowing your risk can also help you learn what changes you should make to your lifestyle to reduce your risk of developing vascular disease in the future.

We recommend adults get a vascular screening every year. To sign up, you can talk to your primary care doctor or you can call our office directly at (210) 736-8200 to schedule an appointment.

The vascular screening appointment is simple:

1. You check in at the front desk, just inside the hospital’s front entrance.
2. When it’s your turn, a member of our team will escort you to the screening room.
3. You’ll sit on an exam table, and our technician will gently press a small wand called a transducer onto each side of your neck to check how well blood is flowing through your carotid arteries.
4. Then you’ll lift your shirt slightly, and the technician will gently press on your belly with the transducer to check your aorta.
5. Next, you’ll get a blood pressure cuff on both arms and both ankles, which will check your blood pressure in all four limbs.
6. Finally, you’ll receive a written statement of your results and what your recommended next steps are. If everything looks good, you can come back in a year. If the screening shows a possible problem, you’ll get recommendations on what to do about it.

The whole process only takes 15 or 20 minutes.

If the screening results are abnormal, we’ll have you come back for further testing, so we can diagnose the specific problem. You can also follow up with your primary care doctor or have further tests done at another vascular clinic, if you’d prefer.

In very rare cases, a vascular screening might show a serious problem. In that case, we will talk over your options with you and may refer you for emergency care, if necessary.

The screening is a simple test and does not show all of the detail that a full diagnostic workup would show. If the test results are abnormal, you’ll need to follow up with your doctor or our office to have more detailed diagnostic tests done. Those diagnostic tests would form the basis of a treatment plan, if necessary.

To learn more about the vascular disease and the services we offer, please call the Methodist Healthcare HealthLine at (210) 575-0355.

Call (210) 736-8200 to schedule your vascular screening appointment.

An electrophysiology lab is where physicians conduct various tests, sometimes called studies, for heart arrhythmias. We offer the following EP services:

• Cardiac ablations — The process of scarring the heart to eliminate faulty electrical pulses causing irregular heartbeats
• EP studies — Insertion of a small rod to record the heart's electrical signals for further examination and diagnosis
• Implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) — Battery-powered device inserted under the skin on the chest to correct more complicated arrhythmias
• Left atrial appendage occlusion — Closure of the left atrial appendage, a small pouch in the heart, which is affected by irregular heartbeats and can release blood clots into the arteries, increasing the risk of a stroke
• Pacemaker implantation — Device inserted under the skin on the chest to regulate heart beats by sending out electrical pulses