Adult Services, Heart & Vascular

Managing atrial fibrillation in the primary care setting

Atrial fibrillation, or A-fib, is an increasingly common chronic condition seen in the primary care setting. Management is multifaceted and requires a team-based approach. Risk for A-fib increases with age and is greater if there is a family history. Modifiable risk factors for A-fib are obesity, diabetes, hypertension, sleep apnea, and excessive caffeine or alcohol…

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Adult Services, Heart & Vascular

Comparing substrate mapping techniques for ventricular tachycardia

Different substrate mapping techniques are available to identify myocardial sites for catheter ablation in ventricular tachycardia (VT) patients. A recent study has for the first time looked at how well they work compared with one another. Published in the journal Heart Rhythm, the study, “Comparison of Combined Substrate-based Mapping Techniques to Identify Critical Sites for…

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Adult Services, Heart & Vascular

Keith A. McLean, M.D., cardiologist, joins Norton King’s Daughters’ Health in Madison, Indiana

Norton Heart & Vascular Institute welcomes Keith A. McLean, M.D., cardiologist, to Norton King’s Daughters’ Health in Madison, Indiana. The office is located in the Norton King’s Daughters’ Health Downtown Medical Building at 630 N. Broadway. With the addition of Dr. McLean, the office will have three providers seeing patients Monday through Friday. Dr. McLean…

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Adult Services, Heart & Vascular

Kevin Graham, M.D., joins Norton Heart & Vascular Institute Structural Heart Program

Kevin A. Graham, M.D., a cardiothoracic surgeon, has joined Norton Heart & Vascular Institute.  Dr. Graham, who earned his medical degree from Indiana University, Indianapolis, and completed his residency there, has been practicing in Illinois. Dr. Graham has participated in the Summit trial, Optimize Pro study, Early TAVR trial and, as site principal investigator, the…

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Adult Services, Heart & Vascular

Ischemic heart disease in women may not show up on standard tests

Ischemic heart disease in women can lead to a heart attack, but this risk may go unnoticed. This is because a patient’s diagnostic coronary angiogram shows “clear” arteries. “When diagnosing women for ischemic heart disease, it is important to consider risk factors specific to women — and those that pose a greater risk to women,”…

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Adult Services, Heart & Vascular

Borderline hypertension poses myocardial dysfunction risks

Borderline hypertension or subclinical hypertension is a substrate for myocardial dysfunction, and patients can go for a long time with hypertension that isn’t clinically recognized, according to a heart failure specialist at Norton Heart & Vascular Institute. Additionally, high hypertension effects can be accelerated to a cardiomyopathy. “When we start thinking about the burden of…

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Adult Services, Heart & Vascular

Hypertension in women and its consequences

The risks and consequences of hypertension in women differ from those in men and change throughout women’s lifetimes. Overall, hypertension in women is less prevalent than in men until age 60 and becomes more prevalent afterward. This pattern may be the result of longer life expectancy, postmenopausal hypertension and lower response rate to treatment. “Understanding…

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Adult Services, Heart & Vascular

Norton Heart & Vascular Institute expands Women’s Heart Program

Norton Heart & Vascular Institute launched a Women’s Heart Program in 1995. Today it has expanded to include more providers and services for a region where heart disease, especially in women, is a deadly issue. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women, taking the…

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Adult Services, Heart & Vascular

CT-FFR analysis shows patient’s level of cardiac obstruction and location, guiding treatment

The patient In July 2022, a 45-year-old male with a six-year history of chest pain went to the emergency room complaining of chest discomfort and shortness of breath over the previous two weeks. He was evaluated by Jacqueline Gray, APRN, and no markers of heart attack were found. Previously, nuclear stress single-photon emission computerized tomography…

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Adult Services, Heart & Vascular

Advances in hyperlipidemia medications put cholesterol goals in reach for more patients

Diet and exercise many times are not enough to lower the risk of hyperlipidemia (HLD). As we’ve learned over the years, genetics can play the biggest role. Fortunately, we now have treatments we didn’t have only a few years ago, giving options for patients who previously had none. At Norton Heart & Vascular Institute’s Lipid…

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Adult Services, Heart & Vascular

Advanced Heart Failure Referral Guidelines

When symptoms of heart failure begin progressing or patients start decompensating, there is a brief opportunity for referral to an advanced heart failure center. The American Heart Association calls this the “golden window.” Primary care providers and others should consider referring a patient to the Norton Heart & Vascular Institute’s Advanced Heart Failure & Recovery…

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Adult Services, Heart & Vascular

Neurohormonal blockade in heart failure

Newly diagnosed heart failure patients have a three-month window of care crucial to their likelihood of recovery. The difference can be returning to a normal life versus awaiting a heart transplant or mechanical circulatory support with a left ventricular assist device (LVAD). In that three-month window, the heart can respond well to a neurohormonal blockade,…

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