Ascension Saint Agnes Heart Care

At Ascension Saint Agnes Heart Care in Baltimore, Maryland, we deliver specialty care and advanced surgical care for complex heart conditions.

Specialty care for complex heart conditions

We’re here for your heart care needs. Ascension Saint Agnes Medical Group Maryland Cardiovascular Specialists offers a wide range of diagnostic cardiac imaging and tests. We work with you to help prevent heart attack or stroke, and we help you manage high blood pressure, high cholesterol and irregular heartbeats. We specialize in caring for many heart conditions, including AFib, congestive heart failure, structural heart and valve care, peripheral artery disease, and coronary artery blockages. If you are experiencing chest pain or stroke symptoms, go to the nearest ER and call 9-1-1. Our Ascension Saint Agnes Hospital ER doctors and cardiologists work quickly to understand your condition and deliver the care you need. 

At Ascension Saint Agnes, we offer many types of tests and minimally invasive procedures to: help prevent serious heart attack or stroke, detect and open clogged arteries, replace damaged heart valves, and return an irregular heartbeat back to a normal rhythm. Our cardiologists connect patients to a network of specialty care, including:

  • Advanced heart failure
  • A-Fib and heart rhythm disorders (electrophysiology)
  • Cardiac transplant and VAD program
  • Cardiothoracic surgery
  • Heart valve and structural heart care
  • Pediatric cardiology
  • Pulmonary hypertension
  • Vascular surgery
  • Women and heart disease assessments

Conditions treated and services offered

  • Vascular diagnostic services and tests
    • Carotid artery ultrasound: Carotid arteries, which are located in the neck, carry blood to the brain. Specialists use ultrasound technology on these arteries to determine if there is plaque buildup exists. Plaque buildup in carotid arteries could lead to a stroke.
    • Abdominal aortic ultrasound: The abdominal aorta is part of the aorta – the largest artery in the body. Specialists use ultrasound technology to examine the part of the aorta that runs through the abdomen, determining if the patient is at risk for abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA).
    • Ankle brachial index (ABI): Using a blood pressure cuff and ultrasound technology, specialists determine the level of blood circulation in the legs. This test can help diagnose conditions like pPeripheral aArterial oOcclusive dDisease (PAOD), a type of atherosclerosis or hardening of the arteries.
    • Angiography: Specialists inject dye into the patient’s blood vessels to view blood flow through the arteries. Physicians then track blood flow using imaging techniques like x-rays, magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) or computed tomography angiography (CTA).
  • Vascular treatments and procedures
    • Minimally-invasive aneurysm repair: Advances in vascular surgery allow surgeons to treat many vascular conditions with minimally invasive techniques. Surgeons can repair some abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA) by delivering a graft through a small incision in the groin. During minimally invasive procedures, patients usually experience less blood loss and a faster recovery time.
    • Open arterial and venous surgery: Open or traditional surgeries often require larger incisions than minimally invasive surgeries. Surgeons may perform open surgeries to fix complex vascular conditions.
    • Minimally invasive and non-invasive treatments: Many vascular conditions can be treated with minimally invasive, outpatient surgery or non-invasive medications.
  • Vascular conditions treated
    • Deep vein thrombosis (DVT): DVT is a blood clot that forms in a vein deep in the body.
    • Pelvic congestion syndrome: Specialists associate this syndrome with chronic dull pain in the pelvis and varicose veins in the abdomen that develop during pregnancy and continue to grow.
    • Peripheral arterial occlusive disease (PAOD): Also known as Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD), PAOD is a type of atherosclerosis, a hardening and narrowing of the arteries that supply blood to the arms and legs.
    • Varicose veins: Swollen, twisted veins that can be seen just under the skin’s surface. These veins usually occur in the legs.
    • Veno occlusive disease (VOD): VOD is an inflammatory condition where some of the small veins in the liver are blocked.
  • Cardiovascular diagnostic services and tests
    • EKG and Holter monitoring: An electrocardiogram (EKG/ECG) measures the electrical activity of the heart. Electrodes placed on the arms, legs and chest provide information about the body’s electrical activity. The test measures damage to the heart, how fast the heart is beating, the effects of drugs or devices used to control the heart and the size and position of the heart chambers. Electrodes are attached by wires to an in-office machine or a Holter Monitor, a machine worn by patients for 24 to 48 hours that records heart rhythms.
    • Stress and nuclear stress testing: A stress test, also known as an exercise stress test, provides information about how well the heart works during physical activity. It involves walking on a treadmill or riding a stationary bike while heart rhythm, blood pressure and breathing are monitored. A nuclear stress test measures blood flow to the heart muscle at rest and during stress on the heart. Like a routine stress test, it is performed during exercise. But, nuclear stress tests involve taking two sets of heart images to determine areas of low blood flow through the heart and damaged heart muscle.
    • Echocardiogram and stress echocardiogram: An echocardiogram uses sound waves to produce heart images. This test shows your doctor physicians how your heart is beating and pumping blood and can help identify abnormalities in your heart muscle and valves. During a stress echocardiogram, a resting echocardiogram is usually done first. Then, you walk on a treadmill or ride a stationary bike so your doctor can capture images while your the heart rate is increasing. The results will show if parts of your heart don’t work as well when your heart rate jumps.
    • Pacemaker and defibrillation evaluation: A pacemaker is a small electrical device implanted in the body to control abnormal heart rhythms, or arrhythmias. By using electrical pulses, it can prompt the heart to beat at a normal rate. It can also speed up or slow down a heart rhythm. An implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) is also a small, electrical device that monitors and helps regulate heart rates and rhythms. If rhythms become dangerous, the ICD delivers shocks – a process known as defibrillation – to stabilize the rhythms. Most new ICDs work as pacemakers and defibrillators. During evaluation, your doctor makes sure the device is working properly. Physicians also assess any arrhythmias you may have had and therapy delivered by the device.
    • Cardiac catheterization is a procedure used to both diagnose and treat heart conditions. Cardiologists place a long, thin tube known as a catheter into a blood vessel in your arm, groin or neck and thread it toward the heart. As a diagnostic tool, catheterization can show any plaque that has accumulated in a patient’s coronary arteries. This plaque buildup is called coronary heart disease or coronary artery disease.
  • Cardiovascular treatments and procedures
    • Cardiac catheterization (coronary artery angioplasty and stenting): Physicians can also use cardiac catheterization to treat coronary artery disease. During a procedure known as angioplasty, physicians thread a catheter with a balloon at its tip to the blocked artery. Then, physicians inflate the balloon to push plaque against the artery wall and create a path for blood flow to the heart. At times, physicians place a stent, or a small mesh tube, in the artery during angioplasty to provide support. Cardiac catheterization can also be used in emergencies to treat a heart attack. When combined with angioplasty, it allows physicians to open blocked arteries and potentially prevent additional heart damage.
    • Radial angioplasty: A radial approach to angioplasty allows physicians to insert a catheter into the radial artery, a branch of the brachial artery that runs around the wrist. By entering through the wrist, physicians are closer to the heart.
    • Pacemaker and defibrillator implantation: Physicians implant pacemakers and defibrillators in hospital settings, usually in cardiac catheterization labs. During the procedure, physicians make a small incision in the chest and then insert the device, connecting wires with electrodes to the heart muscle.
    • Ablation Procedures: Ablation procedures treat abnormal heart rhythms. They can be performed surgically or non-surgically for conditions like atrial fibrillation, the most common type of abnormal heart rhythm, and ventricular tachycardia, a fast heart rhythm that originates in a heart ventricle.
    • Transesophageal Echocardiogram: This type of echocardiogram can help guide physicians during cardiac catheterization or assess a patient’s status during or after surgery. By guiding a probe through the throat and toward the esophagus, physicians can obtain more detailed images of the heart and its blood vessels.

Patient forms

  • New patients

    New cardiology and vascular patients can print and fill-out this form to save time in the waiting room.

    New Patient Questionnaire

  • Follow-up patients
    Returning cardiology and vascular patients can print and fill-out this form to save time in the waiting room.
  • Stress test patients
    If you are participating in a stress test, please fill out this form to save time during your visit.
  • Venous and sclerotherapy patients

    If you are receiving a minimally invasive venous procedure, including: Sclerotherapy, endovenous ablation (VNUS or EVLT) or ambulatory stab phlebectomy, please print and fill out this form before your appointment.

    Patient instructions

  • Compression stocking vendors
    If you are receiving venous care, this list of compression stocking vendors is helpful. Both local and internet vendors are listed.