Triangle Heart Associates provides consultative, interventional, and preventive cardiology services, including:

• Non-invasive cardiovascular imaging, including echocardiogram, stress echocardiogram, nuclear imaging, and coronary CT*
• Exercise stress testing
• Diagnostic cardiac catheterization*
• Balloon angioplasty and stent placement*
• Monitoring of patients taking warfarin
• Implantation* and management of pacemakers and defibrillators
• Risk-factor monitoring
• Guidance with lifestyle modification

*Note: All surgical procedures are conducted at Durham Regional Hospital.

Triangle Heart Associates also provides evaluation and management of cardiovascular conditions, including:

• Acute and chronic coronary artery disease
• Congestive heart failure
• Valvular heart disease
• Cardiac rhythm and conduction disturbances
• Peripheral vascular disease
• Peripheral artery disease
• Heart disease in women
• Lipid management

Overview of Commonly Performed Procedures

Consultative cardiology: A thoughtful assessment of your heart problem.

Preventive cardiology: Discussion concerning your risk factors and lifestyle to prevent cardiovascular disease

Cardiac catheterization: An x-ray procedure with dye, performed at Durham Regional Hospital

Electrophysiology: The invasive study of the electricity of the heart; treatment can include the placement of a pacemaker, defibrillator, or ablation of an abnormal rhythm.

Interventional cardiology: Balloon angioplasty or stent placement, also performed at Durham Regional Hospital

Overview of Commonly Performed Tests

Exercise stress test: Walking on a treadmill or riding a bicycle while attached to an EKG in order to screen for coronary artery disease

Echocardiography: The use of sound waves to take a picture of your heart without radiation

Stress echo: A stress test coupled with an echo to image your heart during exercise

Transesophageal echo: Swallowing a probe to look at your heart from “the inside out” for better definition of the structures

Nuclear studies: A noninvasive use of a radioactive tracer to track blood flow in your heart

Stress cardiolite: An exercise treadmill coupled with a scan

Lexiscan cardiolite: A “drug stress test” which does not require walking, but does require an infusion of a medication

Pacemaker clinic: Monitoring pacemakers / defibrillators that have been implanted

Coumadin clinic: Blood testing to monitor patients on the blood thinner coumadin

Holter monitoring: A 24-hour or 48-hour recording of the heartbeat, which is then analyzed

Event monitoring: A 30-day recording of the heartbeat, which is then analyzed