Beaumont Hospitals, Royal Oak, Michigan
Heart Disease Research at Beaumont Hospitals, Royal Oak, Michigan
— -- I'm Dr. David Haines, Chief of Cardiovascular Medicine for the Beaumont Hospitals here in Michigan, where patients come to us from around the country and around the world for the latest heart care treatment options.
More than 20 years ago, Beaumont became a world leader in heart care when we began studying angioplasty as a primary treatment for heart attack.
A decade ago Beaumont led the way in the research and use of drug-eluting coronary artery stents. We were also the first to use a heart cooling system to limit damage to heart tissue during a heart attack.
Our ongoing studies include assessing the value of 64-slice CT coronary angiography.
We've published the first randomized study of the use of this technology in patients presenting to the emergency room with chest pain. We were able to make a rapid, definitive diagnosis in 75 percent of patients.
Beaumont Hospital is now the lead coordinating center in a multi-center trial called CT-STAT that is testing the value of CT angiography in a large population of ER chest pain patients.
The CT Impact study is comparing the value of CT angiography versus invasive coronary angiography in patients with high suspicion for underlying coronary artery disease. We are using CT angiography and infrared coronary imaging technologies to identify cholesterol plaque that may not be causing severe blockage but is at risk for sudden rupture with vessel occlusion and heart attack
Early aggressive intervention on these vulnerable plaques may prevent heart attacks down the line. Finally we are the lead center using the Impela cardiac assist device during high-risk angioplasty procedures.
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