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T
he heart’s role is to pump oxygen-
rich blood to every cell in the
body for the cells to survive. The heart
muscle also requires oxygen to survive.
A heart attack occurs when the blood
flow bringing oxygen-rich blood to
the heart muscle becomes severely
reduced or cut off. This happens
because coronary arteries that supply
the heart muscle with oxygen-rich
blood flow can slowly become narrow
from a buildup of fat, cholesterol and
other substances that together are
called plaque. This process is known
as atherosclerosis. When a plaque in
a coronary artery breaks, a blood clot
forms around the plaque. This blood
clot can block the blood flow through
the heart muscle causing the heart
muscle to become starved of oxygen
and nutrients, this is called ischemia.
When damage or death of part of
the heart muscle occurs as a result of
ischemia, it is called a heart attack or
myocardial infarction (MI). According
to the American Heart Association,
about every 34 seconds someone in
the United States has a heart attack.
The gold standard treatment for
patients presenting with heart attacks at
accident and emergency departments
in the USA and Europe is through
emergency primary angioplasty.
It is critical for this non-surgical
procedure to be administered as soon
as possible after the heart attack in
order to minimise the risk of death,
or permanent damage to the heart
muscle. When treating a heart attack
every second counts as each moment
following the heart attack results in
the death of heart muscle. Emergency
primary angioplasty immediately
restores the flow of blood through the
blocked artery. The Heart Attack Centre
at Advanced Cardiovascular Institute
(ACI) provides 24/7 EMERGENCY
ACCESS to life-saving emergency
primary angioplasty. ACI is the only
cardiovascular treatment centre in the
Caribbean providing this life saving
treatment consistently and reliably on a
24/7 basis. ACI is conveniently located
at West Shore Medical Private Hospital
at 239 Western Main Road, Cocorite,
Trinidad.
Dr. Ronald Henry, President –
Caribbean Cardiac Society made
the following statement about the
importance of this life-saving procedure
to Trinidad & Tobago - “Primary
angioplasty is the most important,
underserved treatment for heart
attacks in Trinidad & Tobago. At the
present time, worldwide, it’s the most
important thing we could do for heart
attack treatment in the country, and
it’s my fervent hope that it will become
standard of care not just for the private
sector but for the public sector in the
near future. The good news is that
there’s already enough manpower
in Trinidad & Tobago to provide this
service for the country, the challenge
is that Cath Labs need to be organised
strategically to allow the service to
occur, and I am happy that the ACI
Cath Lab has been able to achieve this
landmark.”
With each passing moment after the
heart attack, areas of heart muscle
not receiving the oxygen-rich blood
flow will die; this damage to the heart
muscle is permanent and irreversible.
Emergency primary angioplasty is
Emergency Primary Angioplasty
The Gold Standard for treating
Heart Attacks
performed in a Catheterisation Lab - a
highly specialised medical facility.
During this procedure, a specially
trained interventionalist doctor will
thread a highly specialised deflated
balloon using micro guide wires
through either the femoral artery
(located in the groin area) or radial
artery (located in the arm) through
blood vessels until they reach the
site of blockage in the heart. Special
X-ray imaging is used to guide the
catheter threading. At the blockage
site, this balloon is inflated to open
the artery, allowing blood to flow
immediately through the previously
blocked artery to the heart muscle. A
stent (mesh tube) is often placed at the
site of the blockage to permanently
open the artery. Whilst emergency
primary angioplasty is very effective
in reducing the symptoms of coronary
heart disease, it is not a cure for the
risk factors that led to it.
Emergency primary angioplasty
procedures are presently covered
by most insurance providers in the
Caribbean. This life-saving procedure
has been utilised for a number of
years by international cardiovascular
centres of excellence and plays an
integral role in the global fight against
cardiovascular disease. For inquiries
about life-saving emergency primary
angioplasty, please contact ACI at 628-
4740 or visit us at
