“We are excited to be able to offer the latest in technology in these areas of heart and spine,” said Brad Neet, Interim Chief Executive Officer at Palmdale Regional. “We consistently look for more ways to expand our services and offer advanced procedures to our patients so that they can stay close to home for care instead of leaving the area for medical treatment.”
IVL is a new technology which enables physicians to break up problematic calcium deposits in arteries using sonic pressure waves. Calcium makes the artery rigid and more difficult to treat with current technologies and can result in complications for patients who are undergoing stent procedures. Lithotripsy has been used for decades to treat kidney and uteral stones, and now it is available to treat coronary artery calcification at Palmdale Regional Medical Center.
When people have heart disease, the plaque in their arteries gradually turns into calcium deposits as they get older. This can narrow arteries and can be life-threatening. Stents are often used to open arteries, but having calcium deposits in an artery makes the artery more rigid and can lead to complications for patients who are undergoing stent procedures.
A surgeon makes a small incision in the patient’s arm or leg and guides a catheter to the heart. Emitters at the end of the catheter create sonic pressure waves that fracture the problematic calcium deposits that are restricting blood flow. This makes it easier to safely expand the artery and restore blood flow with the placement of a stent and without unnecessary complications.
In addition, doctors at Palmdale Regional Medical Center perform Biportal Endoscopic Spinal Surgery (BESS), an ultra-minimally invasive surgery accessing the spine through two small ports. The dualPortal solution allows surgeons to perform a wider array of lumbar spine procedures than the conventional one-portal technique. This is done by decoupling the endoscopic camera from the surgical instruments. It also provides flexibility to perform endoscopic lumbar fusions with dualX Dual Expanding Interbody Fusion System.
[Information via news release from Palmdale Regional Medical Center.]
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