EECP
therapy help improve the quality of life
of heart patients:
Prof Azhar Faruqui
Karachi:
Professor Azhar Masood A. Faruqui, Executive
Director, National Institute
of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD) Karachi
has termed the new non-invasive treatment
Enhanced External Counter pulsation (EECP)
a welcome addition to the latest cardiology
treatments and has appreciated Macter in
intoroducing it to Pakistan
EECP is a latest US-FDA approved therapy
requiring no surgical procedures for the
treatment of heart diseases specially for
heart patients who no longer respond to
conventional procedures like bypass and
angioplasty.
Speaking at a seminar organized, by Macter
International, at NICVD to introduce EECP
Professor Faruqui said many of his patients
who opted for EECP have shown positive
signs of recovery and were living a much
better life.
He appreciated the efforts of Macter in
introducing modern medical therapies like
EECP, which he said, would certainly help
in providing relief to heart patients who
have already undergone angioplasty and
bypass surgeries but are unable to lead
a normal life due to continued symptoms
of angina and shortness of breath.
Dr Nageeb Basir, a consultant cardiologist
at Aga Khan University Hospital, informed
in his presentation that the EECP treatment
works by increasing the blood flow to the
heart. Long inflatable cuffs, like those
used to measure blood pressure, are wrapped
around the patient's calves, thighs and
buttocks to increase blood flow as the
cuffs inflate and deflate with each heartbeat
pushing the blood up the leg towards the
heart, while an ECG heart monitor checks
the heart beat.
Dr.Basir said that results proved that
many patients who underwent the treatment
have done really well and that their lives
have been improved. He said that patients
who do not benefit from conventional treatment
for heart failure may benefit from EECP
therapy. The cost of the treatment in Pakistan,
he informed, is around 120 thousand rupees
which is much lower than India.
NICVD assistant professor, Dr Zahid Jamal,
said that the treatment is a six-week (35
sessions) course involving hourly sessions
for six days a week. During each session,
the patient lies on a special treatment
bed and has the cuffs wrapped around their
legs.
Dr. Jamal explained that the EECP therapy
gently but firmly compresses the blood
vessels in the lower limbs to increase
blood flow to the heart. Each wave of pressure
is electronically timed to the heartbeat,
so that the increased blood flow is delivered
to the patient's heart at the precise moment
it is relaxing. When the heart pumps again,
pressure is released instantaneously. This
lowers resistance in the blood vessels
in the legs so that blood may be pumped
more easily from the heart.
EECP may encourage blood vessels to open
small channels that become extra branches.
These channels or collaterals may eventually
become "natural bypass" vessels
to provide blood flow to heart muscle.
This contributes to the relief of angina
symptoms. A patient may be a candidate
for EECP if he or she has chronic stable
angina, are not receiving adequate relief
from angina by taking nitrate, or do not
qualify as a candidate for invasive procedures
(bypass surgery, angioplasty, or stenting).
Published studies that have been conducted
at numerous USA centers have demonstrated
benefits for most patients, including less
need for anti-anginal medication, reduction
in symptoms of angina, increased ability
to do activities without onset of symptoms
and the ability to return to enjoyable
activities.
Macter International has set up two EECP
centers in Pakistan last year-one at the
cardiology unit of The Kidney Centre, Karachi
and another at Shifa International Hospital,
Islamabad.
