WellSpan to Use Shockwave to Break Up Heart Blockages

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WellSpan to Use Shockwave to Break Up Heart Blockages

Cardiologists gain a new life-saving tool in the cath lab

WellSpan cardiologists are opening severely calcified heart blockages with a new tool: sound waves.

Called “Shockwave,” the technology is designed to treat those who have dense, difficult-to-open blockages in their heart’s arteries, a condition often referred to as “hardening of the arteries.”

Cardiologists using Shockwave employ a special balloon for the procedure, guiding it to the blockage of built-up plaque within the walls of the artery. There, it emits ultrasonic

In addition to sourcing food from more than two dozen local vendors, the new Central Table Eatery at Penn Medicine Lancaster General Hospital aims to make healthy choices accessible to everyone. WellSpan Ephrata Community Hospital’s team in a cardiac catheterization lab, where Shockwave technology will arrive in October.

frequencies that crush the blockage and safely push the pulverized pieces out of the way. Once the artery is open, cardiologists can place a stent, a tiny tube that acts like a scaffolding, to hold the artery open.

WellSpan Ephrata Community Hospital’s cardiology team began using the procedure in mid-October. It is already employed at WellSpan York Hospital, WellSpan Chambersburg Hospital, and WellSpan Good Samaritan Hospital. The procedures are done in the cardiac catheterization labs at the hospitals.

“We are looking forward to having this new technique to help our patients at Ephrata,” said Dr. Julian Esteban, an interventional cardiologist at WellSpan Ephrata Community Hospital. “We know this will provide them with excellent results so they can live their best lives.”

Heart disease is the leading cause of death for men, women, and people of most racial and ethnic groups in the United States. The type of heart disease treated by Shockwave, coronary artery disease, is the most common kind of heart disease, killing almost 383,000 patients in the U.S. in 2020, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. About 20 percent of those deaths occur in adults less than 65 years old.

Patients who are prone to heavily calcified, hard blockages includes people with diabetes, people with high cholesterol, and smokers. About 30 percent of patients have this type of blockage.

Also known as intravascular lithotripsy, Shockwave works on the same principles as lithotripsy used in the kidneys to break up kidney stones.

To break up blockages, cardiologists also can use a tiny drill — sometimes compared to a “Roto-Rooter” drill used to clean out pipes in homes. That tiny drill can be used in concert with Shockwave, giving cardiologists an additional tool to open up stubborn or hard blockages.

Shockwave can sometimes give new hope to patients who have been turned down for bypass surgery due to their heavily calcified arteries. It safely unblocks the artery while minimizing risks.

“This is just one tool we offer our patients to treat their cardiac issues as we offer them leading-edge care,” Esteban said.