Chicago-based Amita Health unveiled a new hybrid cardiac catheterization lab at its Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, Ill., bringing Will County its first structural heart program, according to a Dec. 2 Herald News report.
The hybrid lab opened Nov. 18 and will help lead to more effective procedures and quicker recovery times by combining the traditional diagnostic abilities of a cath lab with the surgical functions of an operating room.
"A structural heart disease is a great program for the community," Govind Ramadurai, MD, interventional cardiologist and structural program medical director, said in an Amita Health news release provided to The Herald News. "This will bring more minimally invasive procedures to our patients, including aortic valve replacement, repair of mitral valves and WATCHMAN implant procedures for preventing stroke and closing holes in the heart."
The new lab is part of the health system's "Heart Hospital within a Hospital" project that launched last year. Additionally, the project includes plans to upgrade two other cath labs and the medical center's cardiac 3D mapping software, among other expansions to cardiac intensive care services.