The Penn Medicine Interventional Cardiology Program offers advanced, minimally invasive treatments for heart and blood vessel problems. As the most experienced interventional cardiology team in the Greater Philadelphia region, we offer a wide range of innovative treatments that result in exceptional outcomes for even the most complex cases.
What is Interventional Cardiology?
Interventional cardiology is a type of cardiology that uses hollow, flexible tubes (catheters) to access the heart and blood vessels without open-heart surgery. These procedures, called catheterizations, can diagnose and treat a wide range of heart conditions. Cardiac interventions often eliminate the need for open-heart surgery while providing better results than medication alone.
Interventional Cardiology: The Penn Medicine Advantage
Penn interventional cardiologists are among the most experienced in the nation, working in one of the most advanced programs. People who come to us for care benefit from our:
- Research-driven, innovative care: Our team offers the full range of evidence-based interventional cardiology treatments, including therapies still in clinical trials. We offered innovative treatments such as transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), intravascular lithotripsy, mitral balloon valvuloplasty and MitraClip™ years before they were widely available. At Penn, you're choosing a team with a history of developing and quickly adopting leading-edge treatments.
- Subspecialized, patient-centered approach: Our interventional cardiologists subspecialize in specific diagnoses, treatments and techniques. This niche expertise means we bring you advanced treatments from specialists with extensive experience. And our patient satisfaction ratings are consistently among the highest in the nation. Meet our interventional cardiology treatment team.
- Excellent outcomes: Our outcomes meet and exceed national benchmarks. We have the highest ranking with the Transcatheter Valve Therapy (TVT) Registry, an initiative between the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) and the American College of Cardiology Foundation (ACCF) to track safety and outcomes related to TAVR. We are the only medical system in the Philadelphia region with the highest possible TVT Registry TAVR rating.
- Treatment for complex cases: We are a major regional referral center, taking on the most complex and severe cases of heart and blood vessel disease. If you have high risks associated with surgery or have been turned down for open-heart surgery, our interventional cardiologists offer advanced treatments.
- State-of-the-art technology: We perform many interventional cardiology procedures in our state-of-the-art catheterization (cath) lab. We also have four hybrid operating rooms where we collaborate with surgeons on advanced treatments such as hybrid revascularization and nonsurgical valve replacements.
Collaborative Interventional Cardiology Care
When necessary, multiple specialists collaborate to find the most effective treatment plan for you. With our team-based approach, you have access to experts specialized in congenital (present-at-birth) heart conditions, irregular heart rhythms or heart failure. An entire team of physicians works together to find the most effective treatment plan for you.
Our interventional cardiologists collaborate with many other teams across Penn Medicine, including specialists in the:
Conditions Interventional Cardiologists Treat
Interventional cardiologists can treat nearly any condition that affects the blood vessels inside or outside the heart. We use minimally invasive techniques to open blocked arteries, improve heart function and remove blood clots. Interventional cardiology procedures offer treatment options for people with heart and blood vessel conditions who would like to avoid surgery or who are not eligible for surgery.
Heart and Vascular Diseases
Catheter-based procedures allow minimally invasive treatment of many conditions affecting the heart and blood vessels, including:
Structural Heart Diseases
Interventional procedures can treat a range of conditions affecting the heart's structure, including:
Types of Interventional Cardiology Procedures
Interventional cardiology procedures allow us to access the heart and blood vessels with a minimally invasive approach. In the past, accessing the heart required a long incision through the chest and breastbone, a surgery that often comes with significant pain and extensive recovery.
We can use the catheter approach to treat many heart conditions without making a long incision. Interventional procedures offer multiple benefits, including:
- Decreased risk of heart attack: Interventional procedures often involve opening blocked arteries, which increases blood flow and reduces the risk of heart attack.
- Faster recovery: Not only do interventional cardiology procedures take less time than open surgery, but they also offer shorter recoveries. People typically return home the next day or even the same day as their procedure.
- Lower risk of complications: Because of their less invasive approach, catheter-based procedures are ideal for higher-risk patients, such as elderly people and those with multiple health conditions.
- Minimal pain and scarring: The small incision used during interventional cardiology procedures is hardly detectable after healing. People experience far less pain during recovery than they do after open-heart surgeries.
Our team of experts offers the most leading-edge therapies, including clinical trial treatments. We perform a range of advanced procedures to treat structural heart diseases, including:
Learn more about structural heart disease treatments
Coronary interventions may also include:
Learn more about coronary interventions
We offer a range of peripheral interventions, or catheter treatments for blood vessels outside the heart, including:
- Atherectomy to remove hardened plaque from arteries by using a catheter with a sharp blade, laser or rotating device on the end
- Balloon pulmonary angioplasty to open pulmonary arteries by using small balloons to push clots and scar tissue out of the way
- Renal denervation to reduce blood pressure by strategically damaging renal nerves
Learn more about peripheral interventions
Interventional cardiologists also offer tests and procedures to help diagnose heart conditions, including:
Learn more about interventional cardiology testing and diagnosis
Make an Appointment
Please call 800-789-7366 or request a callback.