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Cardiac catheterization - indications

Cardiac catheterization has both diagnostic and interventional indications. It is recommended for the diagnosis and evaluation of variety of heart diseases, including coronary artery disease, congestive heart failure, valvular heart disease, left ventricular dysfunction, cardiomyopathies, myocardial infarction, and congenital heart disease.

Cardiac catheterization is also used in several therapeutic interventions to treat heart disease, with the most common interventional procedure being coronary angioplasty.

Coronary angioplasty is an operation for enlarging narrowed or blocked coronary arteries.

Review Date: 10/26/2022

Reviewed By: Michael A. Chen, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Harborview Medical Center, University of Washington Medical School, Seattle, WA. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.

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Cardiac catheterization - indications