Over 250 cardiac electrophysiological procedures performed at GMCH

The Cardiology Department at GMCH, Sector 32, has completed over 250 cardiac electrophysiological (EP) procedures over the last two years. This comes as a significant development for patients who have been troubled over the years by heart rhythm disorders or arrhythmias.

Dr Jaskaran Singh Gujral, Consultant Cardiologist and Electrophysiologist at GMCH-32, said before 2022 there were hardly any patients who got EP done from the hospital.

The EP procedure is a state-of-the-art minimally invasive procedure performed through groin via injections and requires a detailed mapping of the heart and the faulty wiring, which leads to arrhythmias. Also known as Radiofrequency Ablation or RFA, the procedure eliminates the need for lifelong medicines in these patients.

Heart rhythm disorder

Arrhythmias or heart rhythm disorders are caused by faulty/extra electrical wiring inside the human heart.

These disorders can occur at any age. People with arrhythmias may experience awareness of their own heart, fast heart beating, missed heart beats, giddiness, and black outs.

In some cases, arrhythmias can lead to heart failure and sudden death. People with these symptoms must immediately get their ECG done and consult a cardiologist or cardiac electrophysiologist.

For the unversed, cardiac electrophysiology employs catheter ablation and device implantation to correct electrical abnormalities. Whereas interventional cardiology utilises procedures like angioplasty and stent placement to address structural issues and improve blood flow. To explain the difference between angioplasty and EP, the latter is in most cases a venous procedure as compared to an angioplasty, which is an arterial procedure.

Dr Jaskaran explained, “To compare EP, it is similar to blood sampling and has a minimal risk. The other thing is that EP procedures have curative potential. With angioplasty, you are only treating critical blockages in a given area. Even after a stent gets implanted, new blockages can still develop and stents can get blocked. You still require medicines to keep stents open and prevent formation of new blockages. The EP procedure, on the other hand (in most cases), is a one-time procedure and patients are cured for life. Hence the need of lifelong medicines is eliminated for these electrical issues.”

In addition to GMCH, these facilities are available in a handful of hospitals across the region. Dr Jaskaran explained, “The facility is also available in PGIMER and Fortis Hospital, but not many doctors opt for it since it requires additional training after the mandatory three-year training in cardiology and the EP procedure is much more time consuming than angioplasty.”

There are no National Medical Commission (NMC) accredited programmes to train for EP procedures. Training programmes for EP can last from six months to two years and most of these are concentrated in South India or abroad. “Which is why, the awareness is low and that is the whole point of bringing this topic,” said Dr Jaskaran who has a fellowship in Cardiac Electrophysiology from Lisie Hospital, Kochi.