Angioplasty

Currently, emergency and elective angioplasty are available on-site at Southern New Hampshire Medical Center Monday through Friday between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. The program will be expanding to 24/7 coverage in the coming months. During off hours, emergency angioplasty is performed at Lahey Clinic.

Seconds count during a heart attack. As the following graphic illustrates, the risk of death increases proportionately with the amount of time that passes after the onset of symptoms.

According to the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiac Surgeons, the time between the onset of symptoms and emergency intervention should be 90 minutes or less. The following chart illustrates the relative increase of death when that time is exceeded. For example, at 159 minutes, the relative risk increases to approximately 1.7, meaning that risk of death has increased approximately seven times due to the time to treatment.

Interventional cardiac surgery procedures, such as open heart, are provided at partner hospitals including Lahey Clinic and Catholic Medical Center. In the event that a patient receives care at a facility other than The Medical Center, comprehensive rehabilitation services and follow-up appointments are available locally.