With an outpatient footfall of nearly 600 patients each day, the Department of Cardiology at the Tamil Nadu Government Multi Super Speciality Hospital (TNGMSSH), Omandurar Government Estate is among the State’s busiest cardiac care centres in the government sector.
In 10 years, the department has performed a total of 31,157 interventional procedures at its cardiac cath lab. This included coronary angiogram, coronary angioplasty, percutaneous transcatheter mitral valve commissurotomy, atrial septal defect (ASD) device closure, ventricular septal defect device closure, electrophysiological studies with arrhythmia ablation, permanent pacemaker implantation, balloon aortic valvotomy, balloon pulmonary valvotomy, RSOV (ruptured sinus of valsalva) aneurysm device closure, transcatheter aortic valve replacement and implantable cardioverter defibrillator implantation and cardiac resynchronisation therapy with defibrillator.
“We get patients from various parts of the State and neighbouring places such as Puducherry. Many of them are referred to our centre. There are two large wards for men and women. We have around 100 beds, and the unit consistently runs at full capacity. There are seven intensive care units with 60 beds,” J. Cecily Mary Majella, professor and head, Department of Cardiology, and senior interventional cardiologist, TNGMSSH, said.
The department has performed among the highest volumes of ASD device closures in the government sector in Tamil Nadu. Significantly, young women made up 290 of the 340 patients who underwent percutaneous ASD device closure, she said, adding: “This is a congenital heart defect in which there is a hole between the two atria. The percutaneous approach is especially advantageous for young women, as it avoids open-heart surgery and leaves no scar on the chest.”
She said that two other major highlights include the percutaneous device closure of a RSOV in a 73-year-old man, who was the world’s oldest patient, and a double RSOV device closure in a 22-year-old man. The department has done 220 electrophysiological studies and ablation.
While Dr. Majella received an award from the Asia Pacific Vascular Interventional Society for performing lifesaving interventions for “rarest of rare cases” earlier this year, the cardiology team has published two significant research articles in the European Heart Journal this month. The articles are “Comparative analysis of young acute coronary syndrome in pre and post COVID pandemic” and “Ectatic coronary arteries— increasing trends post COVID-19 infection”. One article looks at myocardial infarctions in the young aged below 45 years. Both the articles involved a huge data of more than 10,000 patients documented from 2016 to 2023, Dr. Majella added.
She said that heart attacks are on the rise in both men and women. “It is advisable to undergo early screening for blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol levels, modify diet and lifestyle, and avoid excessive stress. Heart attacks are largely preventable and regular check-ups can play a crucial role in prevention. There has been a surge in heart attacks among people under 45. There are many cases of sudden cardiac deaths. Therefore it is important to get basic investigations such as ECG, ECHO done, consult a cardiologist based on the results, and go for further health checks if necessary,” she said.