Pune: Doctors at a private hospital in the city recently used sound waves to break down calcium deposits in an elderly patient's heart, in what has been described as a novel approach to clear blocked arteries. The patient, an 86-year-old male with diabetes and history of hypertension, was admitted to hospital with chest pain, the doctors said. An angiography later revealed a heavily calcified 90% stenosis in the left main artery.
Given the patient's age and the accompanying complications, the doctors — at the Aditya Birla Memorial Hospital — had to be extremely careful, before placing a stent. They prepared a comprehensive plan to attack the calcium block, using a procedure called Orbital-tripsy, a combination of orbital atherectomy , which clears built-up plaque, and shockwave intravascular lithotripsy, which uses sonic pressure to crack calcium deposits in arteries. Both techniques helped expand the artery, enough for stent placement, and were part of a single procedure.
"Remarkably, the patient was discharged 36 hours after post-angioplasty, demonstrating excellent recovery," said Dr Rajesh Badani, associate director and interventional cardiologist with Aditya Birla hospital. "This is the first time in Pune doctors have deployed a combination of orbital atherectomy and shockwave intravascular lithotripsy to complete such a procedure. Typically, patients with such complex coronary issues need an open-heart bypass surgery, which requires a longer recovery period post-sur.
