Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital cardiac lab receives update

Feb. 20--ALBANY -- New interventional cardiology treatment procedures and technology are being pioneered, increasing a full range of treatments for patients suffering from cardiac ailments. At Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital, such an upgrade was 11 years in the making.

Phoebe's electrophysiology lab recently underwent a $1.3 million upgrade. New developments include a mapping system which interventional electrophysiology specialists use, in addition to fluoroscopy, to identify precise placement during cardiac ablation and pacemaker implant procedures.

The investment also included a new enhanced, three-dimensional imaging system to provide optimal visualization.

"After 11 years, the old system had problems," Dr. Kamil Hanna, cardiac electrophysiologist with Phoebe's heart and vascular program, said. "With the help of the administration, (Phoebe Putney Health System President and CEO) Mr. (Joel) Wernick and the (hospital) board, it was approved."

Hanna and Dr. Edward Koomson are among the physicians using the technology. The labs conduct tests to help doctors understand the nature of abnormal heart rhythms. During electrophysiology tests, patients are mildly sedated and doctors use an electrode catheter to send electrical signals to the patient's heart and record its electrical activity.

The testing is considered critical for detecting irregular heartbeats that follow heart attacks, signify high blood pressure or simply come with aging -- and may cause scarring of the heart.

The advancements were approved in October, after which the old technology was dismantled and the new set was constructed ahead of the upgrade opening in early January with "state-of-the-art equipment" providing the medical staff with the tools needed to treat conditions such as complex arrhythmias.

"This is one of the most modern labs in the state of Georgia," Hanna said.

The doctor said the new equipment has no cables that can be tripped over or accidentally disconnected by a cleaning crew and is instead connected on the ceiling. The fluoroscopy equipment is brand new and reduces the amount of radiation the patient is exposed to, he said.

Hanna said the upgrade allows for more efficient and effective use, noting the procedures the equipment is used for once took 18 hours -- and now they take three of four hours, and the outcomes overall are more reliable.

"We can now schedule two procedures in a day without significant impact on staff (or timetables)," he said.

The latest improvements mark the third technology update to the lab Hanna has seen since he came to Phoebe in 2007. The most recent upgrade, he said, is an "all around improvement."

"It is a win-win for everyone," he said. "Everything has to be functioning correctly for the patient to get off the table safely."

As for the future, Hanna said: "We will just catch up with technology as it evolves."

To become an electrophysiologist, a physician has to first become an internist. They then complete three years of cardiology training, after which they further study electrophysiology, a branch of cardiology that deals with the diagnosis and treatment of heart rhythm disorders.

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