Susan Benson, MD, gynecologist at Ascension St. Vincent Women’s Health, shares why women don’t have to suffer through menopause with a personalized treatment plan.
Structural heart valve care
Get care from a leader in heart valve and structural heart care at Ascension St. Vincent Heart Center in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Heart valve care in Indiana
Get care from a leader in heart valve and structural heart care at Ascension St. Vincent Heart Center in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Why choose us
When you choose Ascension St. Vincent for your heart care, your doctor is part of a nationally recognized leading team in heart valve and structural heart disorders.
Understand your heart valve disease
Cardiologists at Ascension St. Vincent specialize in heart and valve disease, which is when one or more heart valves don’t work properly. The valves normally keep blood flow moving forward in one direction. And they prevent the backward flow of blood as it leaves each chamber of the heart.
There are two main types of heart valve disease:
- Leakage of the valve (regurgitation or insufficiency): When the valve does not close completely, it causes blood to flow backward through the valve. This reduces forward blood flow and can lead to volume overload in the heart.
- Narrowing of the valve (stenosis): When the valve opening becomes narrowed, it limits the blood flow out of the heart. The heart is forced to pump blood with more force to move blood through the narrowed or stiff valve.
Heart valves can develop both regurgitation and stenosis at the same time. Also, more than one heart valve can be affected at the same time.
Mike and Steve's story
Symptoms of heart valve disease
Common symptoms of heart valve disease and heart arrhythmias include:
- Chest pain
- Fluttering heartbeat (palpitations)
- Severe tiredness (fatigue)
- Dizziness or fainting
- Low or high blood pressure, depending on the type of valve disease
- Shortness of breath with activity or rest
- Belly pain because of an enlarged liver (if the tricuspid valve isn’t working correctly)
- Swelling in the legs, ankles, feet, abdomen, or veins in the neck
How we diagnose heart valve disease
This is also known as a cardiac or heart cath. For this test, your doctor guides a small catheter (hollow tube) through the large artery in your upper leg, or sometimes your wrist or arm, into your heart. This procedure lets your doctor take a close look at the heart to identify concerns and to perform other tests or procedures.
This imaging procedure uses an X-ray machine and a computer to create 3-D pictures of the heart. Sometimes a dye is injected into a vein so that your heart arteries can also be seen. Sometimes medicine is given to lower your heart rate so it captures a better image. It can also be used to find out how much calcium is in your heart arteries. Calcium is a marker for coronary artery disease.
This procedure uses a combination of large magnets, radio waves, and a computer to make detailed images of organs and structures in your body. Your doctor may order an MRI of the heart to look at the heart valves and major vessels. It can also detect coronary artery disease and how much damage it has caused. It can also assess heart problems that have been present since birth. It can find tumors and other conditions. Your doctor may order this test before other procedures such as angioplasty or stenting of the coronary arteries and heart or vascular surgery.
This test makes images of internal tissues, bones, and organs on film. An X-ray can show enlargement in any area of the heart.
It's used to check the heart's function and structures. During the procedure, a transducer (like a microphone) sends out sound waves at a frequency too high to be heard. When the transducer is placed on the chest at certain locations and angles, the sound waves move through the skin and other body tissues to the heart tissues. The waves bounce or "echo" off the heart structures. These sound waves are sent to a computer that can create moving images on the screen of the heart walls and valves.
This test records the electrical activity of the heart, shows abnormal rhythms (arrhythmias), and can sometimes detect heart muscle damage.
This is also called a treadmill or exercise ECG. This test is done to monitor the heart while you walk on a treadmill or pedal a stationary bike. Your doctor also monitors your breathing and blood pressure. A stress test may be used to detect coronary artery disease, or to determine safe levels of exercise after a heart attack or heart surgery. This test can also be done using special medicines that stress the heart in a similar manner as exercise does. Sometimes a stress test will collect ECG information along with heart ultrasound pictures. This is called an exercise or stress echocardiogram (echo). It's more sensitive and specific than ECG stress testing alone.
This test is similar to a transthoracic echocardiogram. But it's done with medicine to help you relax (sedation). It's considered invasive because a probe is put into your body. In this test, you will swallow a small probe about the size of your thumb. The probe passes down the esophagus, which lies directly behind the heart. It allows a much closer look at the heart's structure and function than a standard echocardiogram done on the skin of the chest. It can better look at heart valve structure and function. Your doctor can better see any blood clots that may be in the heart.
Your doctor may think you have heart valve disease if your heart doesn’t sound right through a stethoscope. They may hear abnormal sounds because of abnormal blood flow across a valve.
How we treat heart valve disease
For this nonsurgical procedure, a special hollow tube (catheter) is put into a blood vessel in the groin and guided into the heart. At the tip of the catheter is a deflated balloon that is inserted into the narrowed heart valve. Once in place, the balloon is inflated to stretch the valve open, and then removed. This procedure is only used to treat stenotic (narrowed) valves.
Your cardiologist may recommend medications to help manage your heart condition. Medication may be used to lower blood pressure, prevent blood clots, lower cholesterol and more.
For this nonsurgical procedure, a new aortic valve is placed inside the older narrowed valve. This is done using catheters, balloons, and wires inserted through the arteries of the groin. Or in some cases, they may be inserted through the arteries of the arms or the apex or bottom of the heart. This procedure is currently used mostly for aortic stenosis, although it is being studied for use for aortic regurgitation.
These are minimally invasive procedures, allowing your doctor to replace the heart valves without open heart surgery. It's done through an artery (for the aortic valve) or a vein (for the tricuspid, pulmonary, or mitral valve) and is often performed from the groin.
Cardiac surgeons treat complex heart valve disease to repair damaged heart valves through open heart surgery and minimally invasive procedures, including TAVR and MitraClip™. When one or both of your valves do not open or close correctly, it can lead to reduced blood flow, cause the heart to work harder, and result in symptoms such as fatigue, shortness of breath, chest pain, fainting, or even heart failure.
Treatment for heart valve disease may include medication, therapy or surgery.
Clinical trials
Our doctors are committed to being leaders in cardiovascular research, working to help improve how we diagnose and treat heart and vascular diseases. You can talk to your cardiologist if you are interested in participating in clinical trials.
Get a second opinion from a heart specialist
Decisions about your heart care are important. Getting a second opinion not only provides more information about your condition, but it can help you feel more confident in the doctor and the care plan you choose. Consider getting a second opinion if:
- Your diagnosis or prognosis is unclear
- You’ve been told you have a rare or life-threatening condition
- You would like to explore other treatment options
- Your treatment options are costly or risky
- You want to hear an opinion from another specialist
- Your insurance requires a second opinion
How to get care
To make an appointment, a referral should be made by your primary care doctor or another specialist. Once the referral is received and reviewed, you will be contacted to schedule an appointment with a cardiologist.
If you are experiencing a life-threatening emergency, go directly to the ER or call 911.
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Peyton Manning Children's Hospital patient served as the "Coin Toss Kid" at Lucas Oil Stadium during the Colts game in Indianapolis.
Physical therapists at Ascension St. Vincent across Indiana use dry needling to help with muscle injuries by easing pain and helping you move better.
Miranda Wahnsiedler, MSN, BS, AGCNS-BC, RNC-OB, C-ONQS, was recognized by the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses for her dedication to the improvement of women’s health.
The new Lucas Family Brain and Spine Hospital at Ascension St. Vincent in Indianapolis, IN, was thoughtfully designed to promote healing and reduce anxiety through intentional choices, while honoring heritage and community.
The newly expanded Hilbert Pediatric Emergency Department at Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital provides Central Indiana families with greater access to high-quality, specialized emergency care.
If incidents occur this Fourth of July, knowing where and when to get immediate and emergency care is important.
Ascension urgent care and orthopedic teams are here to help you manage your summer injury.
Ascension St. Vincent announces its new brain and spine hospital will be named Lucas Family Brain and Spine Hospital at Ascension St. Vincent. The name honors the donation from an Indianapolis family for their generosity and partnership.
The new Ascension St. Vincent Brain and Spine Hospital will be the premier destination for cranial and spine care, ensuring that Indiana families have access to the best care close to home.
Advanced care for women and infants now open in Indianapolis with the Women and Infants Hospital on the Ascension St. Vincent Hospital campus.
Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital is a verified Level I Pediatric Trauma Center in Indianapolis treating children with life-threatening injuries.
Emergency care team at Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital in Indianapolis, Indiana, tell parents that CPR helped save their daughter’s life.
Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital kidney transplant team plans a Big Ten championship watch party for a longtime kidney patient in Indianapolis.
Brothers Mike and Steve Vandeveer undergo a minimally invasive heart surgery known as TAVR which helps shorten recovery time and reduce the risk of infection.