My Experience with Right and Left Heart Catheterization

I celebrated my 3rd Heartiversary on February 2nd. I cannot believe it has actually been 3 years since I was given my gift.

On or close to my anniversary the heart transplant team usually calls me to get me scheduled for my right and left heart catheterization. At my appointment in November, they told me I would only be getting the left heart catheterization because my numbers from the right heart looked good.

Tests to check my heart

At the beginning of my heart transplant journey the doctors told me that for the first month, I would have to do the right heart catheterization once a week. Then once every other week, then once a month, then once every other month, and so on and so forth. This continued until my team told me they had a way of checking the heart in a less evasive way. Instead, they would send someone to my house to draw my blood and they could tell by the numbers. Allomap and Allosure are the tests they used to see if the heart is in rejection and it can be seen by a score.

Back to the right heart catheterization, the doctors place a catheter in the blood vessel in the neck, arm, or leg to check the pressures of the heart and to take a biopsy. For me, they always go through my neck. The biopsy is a tiny sample of the heart tissue to test for rejection.

Contrast liquid is also used so they can see the heart more clearly. The nurse gives you just enough sedation to make you “relax.” I don’t know what they mean by comfortable because I still felt something, well you feel the lidocaine shots before they stick the catheter in. The lidocaine numbs the area before they place the catheter. Left heart catheterization is the same thing but they place the catheter in the wrist, groin, or leg.

The night before a heart catheterization

The night before a catheterization, I used to not get any sleep because I was so nervous that the heart would be in rejection or we would get bad news. I had gotten to be an expert at getting bad news.

Now, sleep comes easy the night before because I know what to expect. I started relaxing more and more because one day for one of my appointments my team told me, "it's like the heart was made for you" and the heart was happy with me. That was music to my ears since I was always stressing before these appointments.

My procedure experience

So, I went to check in for the left heart cath, and they sent me up to the floor where I would be getting the procedure done. The wait was long, I think we waited for an hour before they called me back to start prepping.

The nurse put an I.V. in and took some blood for some tests. Then I got an EKG done and waited to go down to the procedure room. While I was waiting, the guy who went down to his procedure before me had a complication so it took a long time before it was my turn. Because the doctors are going through veins there are risks that something can go wrong.

When finally it was my turn to go down to the procedure room the Cath lab sent someone up to get me. The first thing the Cath lab does when patients get into the room is a time-out. This is when they ask you your name, date of birth, allergies, and they explain the procedure and the risks involved.

After the time-out, I move over from my bed to the procedure table. The nurse told me she was going to give me sedation in my I.V. and simultaneously the other nurse began prepping my wrist and my groin just in case they couldn’t go through my wrist. Then the sedation started hitting me and I became “comfortable.”

After the procedure, they took me back upstairs to where I recover. My nurse brought me the sought-after turkey sandwich box lunch that everyone flocks to the hospital for. I actually was going to bring my own food, but I ran out of time the day before. I did however eat the Oreos that came in the box. After eating the Oreos and half the sandwich, the echocardiogram tech came and completed the echo.

My nurse told me my magnesium was low so she gave me an infusion. After that was done it was time for me to be discharged.

As heart failure and heart patients, this is one of the many tests we have to go through. My sincere hope is that this article helps someone.