St. Luke’s University Health Network’s interventional cardiology team recently debuted the Abbott PressureWire X, the tiniest device ever made for measuring the health and function of the mini-arteries that supply blood flow to the heart muscle. St. Luke\u2019s is the first and only heart program using this innovative tool.<\/p>\n
The Abbot PressureWire X, which is about the thickness of a human hair, is inserted by a cardiologist into a symptomatic, but unblocked coronary artery, and advanced to the far reaches of the vessel to seek defects in the walls and inner lining of the tiny blood vessel that lies downstream of a larger coronary artery.<\/p>\n
PressureWire X, which has been used in St. Luke\u2019s cardiac catheterization laboratory since July, measures blood temperature and flow in the minute blood vessels, or micro-vessels. A diseased or damaged artery can cause serious symptoms, including angina (heart pain) and vessel spasms, which also can sometimes mimic a heart attack. Heart attacks are caused when one of the three main, larger coronary arteries supplying blood to the heart muscle becomes narrowed, or completely blocked, by plaque.<\/p>\n
A sensor on the wire relays data picked up in the vessel to a computer containing new, specialized CoroFlow software, enabling a cardiologist to diagnose the symptoms\u2019 cause and prescribe a treatment.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe can insert the PressureWire X far into an artery of a patient who has chest pain but not blockages, in order to look into the \u2018micro-vessels\u2019 for what\u2019s causing their symptoms,\u201d said Luis Tejada, MD, interventional cardiologist. He added that \u201csmall vessel disease\u201d tends to be more commonly found in women, whose arteries are often smaller.<\/p>\n
According to Kimberly Wilson, DO, interventional cardiologist, \u201cThis new device increases our options for diagnosing and treating the network of tiny coronary arteries, which supply about 90% of blood to the heart muscle.\u201d<\/p>\n
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About St. Luke\u2019s<\/strong><\/p>\n Founded in 1872,\u00a0St. Luke\u2019s University Health Network<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0(SLUHN) is a fully integrated, regional, non-profit network of more than 20,000 employees providing services at 15 campuses and 350+ outpatient sites.\u00a0 With annual net revenue of $3.4 billion, the Network\u2019s service area includes 11 counties in two states: Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, Bucks, Carbon, Montgomery, Monroe, Schuylkill and Luzerne counties in Pennsylvania and Warren and Hunterdon counties in New Jersey. St. Luke\u2019s hospitals operate the largest network of trauma centers in Pennsylvania, with the Bethlehem Campus being home to St. Luke\u2019s Children\u2019s Hospital.<\/p>\n Dedicated to advancing medical education, St. Luke\u2019s is the preeminent teaching hospital in central-eastern Pennsylvania.\u00a0 In partnership with Temple University, the Network established the Lehigh Valley\u2019s first and only four-year medical school campus.\u00a0 It also operates the nation\u2019s oldest School of Nursing, established in 1884, and 52 fully accredited graduate medical educational programs with more than 500 residents and fellows. In 2022, St. Luke\u2019s, a member of the Children\u2019s Hospital Association, opened the Lehigh Valley\u2019s first and only free-standing facility dedicated entirely to kids.<\/p>\n SLUHN is the only Lehigh Valley-based health care system to earn Medicare\u2019s\u00a0five-star<\/em>\u00a0ratings (the highest) for quality, efficiency and patient satisfaction.\u00a0 It is both a Leapfrog Group and Healthgrades\u00a0Top Hospital<\/em>\u00a0and a Newsweek World\u2019s\u00a0Best Hospital<\/em>.\u00a0 The Network\u2019s flagship University Hospital has earned the\u00a0100 Top Major Teaching Hospital<\/em>\u00a0designation from Fortune\/PINC AI 10 years in a row, including in 2023 when it was identified as THE #4 TEACHING HOSPITAL IN THE COUNTRY.\u00a0 In 2021, St. Luke\u2019s was identified as one of the\u00a015 Top Health Systems<\/em>\u00a0nationally.\u00a0 Utilizing the Epic electronic medical record (EMR) system for both inpatient and outpatient services, the Network is a multi-year recipient of the\u00a0Most Wired<\/em>\u00a0award recognizing the breadth of the SLUHN\u2019s information technology applications such as telehealth, online scheduling and online pricing information. \u00a0The Network is also recognized as one of the state\u2019s lowest-cost providers.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Information provided to TVL by: St. Luke’s University Health Network’s interventional cardiology team recently debuted the Abbott PressureWire X, the tiniest device ever made for measuring the health and function of the mini-arteries that supply … Continue reading St. Luke\u2019s Heart Team Debuts Tiniest Device for Detecting \u201cMicro-Vessel\u201d Disease<\/span>
\nSam Kennedy<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"