Your heart is a muscle. Beating millions of times every year, it pumps blood around your body. Blood carries oxygen and nutrients to your body and helps to remove waste products.
As with all muscles, your heart works best when it is healthy and well. Occasionally something can stop the heart from working normally, or the blood vessels may become narrowed or blocked. When this happens, medical treatment may be needed.
A problem with your heart or blood vessels (known as the circulatory system) can significantly affect your physical, mental and emotional health.
Our Consultants have years of experience treating private patients who are suffering with cardiovascular problems. They can help you too.
Cardiology is the medical speciality that investigates and treats diseases of the heart and/or blood vessels. A doctor who specialises in this field of medicine is known as a cardiologist.
In the UK, millions of people are affected by heart and circulatory diseases.
Common problems of the cardiovascular system include:
- Angina and heart attacks,
- Heart rhythm problems,
- Heart failure,
- Valve disease,
- Hypertension – high blood pressure,
- High cholesterol.
Heart problems left untreated will often get worse, with the potential to cause more problems with your long-term health. If you are at all concerned about your heart health, you’ll want to get an accurate diagnosis. Once a diagnosis has been made, treatment options can be discussed, planned and started.
The symptoms below can all be signs that some part of your cardiovascular system isn’t working as well as it should:
- Chest pains: this may be a heaviness or tightness in the chest, or a sharp, stabbing pain. It may get worse on exertion, when breathing in or lying down
- Palpitations: can feel like a fluttering, pounding or irregular heartbeat
- Breathlessness,
- Feeling more tired or weak, even at rest, or having a reduced exercise tolerance,
- Swollen ankles or legs,
- Heart rate becoming slower or faster than normal,
- Dizzy spells or passing out.
If you have crushing pain in and around your chest, possibly also with pain down your left arm, you should always seek urgent medical help.
Any of these symptoms can be unsettling and unpleasant to experience. However, they aren’t always a sign of a problem with your heart or blood vessels. If you are experiencing any of them, it’s important to get expert medical assessment.
Here at The Meriden Hospital, our Consultant Cardiologists can provide expert assessment, diagnosis and treatment to help improve your health.
The cardiovascular system is spread throughout your body and affects every part of it. This means that narrowing things down to a specific cause can sometimes be quite a complicated process.
When you first meet with your Consultant, they’ll talk with you about your symptoms. They’ll want to know things like:
- If you have chest pain, the type of pain it is: For example, is it sharp or dull, does it come on at rest, or during exercise?
- Whether your symptoms have been getting worse over time?
- How long this has been going on for?
In order to diagnose cardiovascular problems accurately there are a range of different diagnostic tests and technologies that can be used.
At The Meriden Hospital, we’re able to provide a comprehensive Cardiology service onsite. With standard and advanced equipment, we can offer a range of diagnostic tests, including:
- Blood tests,
- Electrocardiogram (ECG), to measure your heart's electrical activity,
- Echocardiography: a specialised ultrasound scan of the heart,
- Heart rhythm monitoring,
- Exercise tolerance tests: to see how well your heart functions at different levels,
- CT coronary angiogram: uses X-rays and computer technology to produce imaging of the blood vessels supplying your heart.
- Cardiac MRI scan: magnetic resonance scan of your heart to assess its structure and function in great detail.
Once diagnosis has been made, it’s important to make sure you get the right treatment. Common treatments for cardiovascular problems include:
- Dietary changes,
- Increasing physical activity and exercise,
- Medication,
- Surgery, such as insertion of a pacemaker, performing an ablation or unblocking of a narrowed blood vessel.
Unusually for a private hospital, The Meriden Hospital has its own Cardiac Catheterisation Lab. This dedicated environment provides us with the ability to carry out a wide range of tests and interventional procedures such as electrophysiology studies and ablation, angioplasty, or implantation of a pacemaker.
Once a diagnosis has been made, your Consultant will talk you through about treatment options, ensuring you have all the information you need to make an informed choice. Whether your treatment requires watchful waiting, medication or surgery, you will be in good hands.
Regular follow-up helps ensure you continue to receive the optimal treatment at all times. If you have questions at any time it’s very easy to arrange a time to see your Consultant for help and advice.
Our Consultant Cardiologists support and treat people with cardiovascular problems. There are a number of reasons people choose the The Meriden Hospital for their heart health:
- Being seen quickly: When you’re struggling with a heart problem, you’ll want to get it diagnosed and treated as quickly as possible. With quick access to heart experts, we’ll be able to assess, diagnose and treat you without undue delay.
- Appointments to suit you: We appreciate that life can often be very busy. We’re open until 9pm for consultations so that you can schedule time with your doctor at a time that’s most convenient for you.
- Treatment tailored just for you: With heart health, there is no ‘one size fits all’ treatment option. Any treatment should be personalised to give you the best results and to successfully manage the cause(s) of your condition. From medication advice to cardiac surgery, we provide a comprehensive range of treatments to help improve your cardiovascular health.
- Multidisciplinary team: From experienced Consultant Cardiologists, nurses and physiotherapists through to occupational therapists and radiographers, our team works together to ensure you receive the highest level of care and support at all times.
- Peace of mind: In an independent survey, over 98% of the people we treated said they were likely or highly likely to recommend us to their friends and family. Cardiac problems can be a real source of worry, but your Consultant will talk through any questions or concerns you may have to help reassure you.
If you’re feeling anxious or concerned about a problem with your heart, it’s important to know that there are people around who can help.
You are not alone.
Good, effective treatments are available for a wide range of heart problems, and it’s easy to book a consultation with an expert.
Your Consultant will investigate the cause(s) of your symptoms and then talk with you about any suitable treatment options.
If surgery is needed, such as an implant of a pacemaker, they can arrange that for you simply and without delay.
Book an appointment online today.
