Patient at Mediclinic Al Noor Successfully Treated for a Blocked Coronary Artery

A patient in his late 50s was successfully treated at Mediclinic Al Noor Hospital for a severe calcific blockage in the left anterior descending artery with minimally invasive keyhole surgery, using the hospital’s newly acquired innovative technology.

The technology is being used for the first time in a private hospital in the Middle East, and for the second time in the public or private sector in the UAE.

Two years following his previous stenting procedure to treat a blockage in the right coronary artery, the patient developed multiple blockages due to severe calcification in the left anterior descending artery which supplies blood to half of the heart. Investigations unveiled that that there were multiple blockages of calcium ranging from 70% to 95%. Such blockages may lead to heart attack if left untreated.

Dr. Ahmed Khashaba, Consultant Interventional Cardiologist, said: “Such cases are traditionally treated with open heart surgery as calcium lesions are difficult to treat with a traditional angioplasty and stenting procedure. This is due to the hard nature of the calcium lesions in the artery.

“Thanks to our newly acquired innovative interventional treatment system, which is used to treat such complex cases, we were able to resort to a less invasive approach. The innovative technology uses an orbital drill that decreases the calcification without affecting the healthy tissue.”

The procedure was successfully performed under local anaesthesia through a small vessel in the wrist guided by an advanced imaging technique to achieve best possible results. After sanding the calcium using the orbital drill, Dr. Khashaba managed to successfully inflate a small balloon in the artery and used multiple stents to decrease the chances of it narrowing again. The patient was discharged from the hospital in a good health condition on the same day.

This procedure marks the hospital’s first case of calcific coronary blockage treatment using this particular technique, which is a testament to the hospital’s commitment to using innovative technologies that offer optimal results for its patients.