Alternative scanning methods used to combat heart valve disease
Tuesday 13th December 2011
A new alternative scanning method is being introduced to help doctors and those involved in locum cardiology work have greater insight into heart valve disease.
Researchers at the University of Edinburgh have developed technology that can help predict when a patient will need open heart surgery to replace their valves and improve treatment to prevent the disease.
Currently doctors use ultrasound checks to look for the cause of aortic stenosis but now the new scans give medical staff a better insight into how to combat the disease.
Dr Marc Dweck, of the University of Edinburgh's Clinical Research Imaging Centre, said: "These scans will help us better understand what is happening to the heart valves, and hopefully help us to halt the processes causing the narrowing. It may also allow us to predict which patients are likely to need an operation and when this might occur."
According to the British Heart Foundation, the disease is usually detected by an echocardiogram but now with this new technology doctors will be able to fight the condition earlier.
written by Alex Franklin Stortford
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