What Does hemodynamics Mean
The concept of hemodynamics is not part of the dictionary developed by the Royal Spanish Academy ( RAE ). The term that does appear is hemodynamics , defined as the study of the physical laws that regulate blood pressure and flow .
The notion of hemodynamics, however, appears in various contexts related to health . This is the name of the technique that uses catheters for the study of cardiac pathologies and the vascular system .
Hemodynamics, within this framework, allows analyzing the mechanics of the heart and blood dynamics in capillaries, arteries and veins. Catheters are inserted into arteries in the arm or groin to find out what state the blood vessels are in.
These catheters carry a contrast medium that makes them visible in radiological machines that use X-rays . Thus the medical professional can observe the morphology of the heart and vessels and measure volumes and pressures , for example.
The hemodynamic service of a health center, therefore, is responsible for the application of this type of diagnostic or treatment techniques . The chambers of the heart and heart valves can be studied in this way, as can the electrical activity of the organ.
Notably, the heart works as a pump that sends blood throughout the body through the aorta artery, where other arteries originate. If the coronary arteries are blocked by the accumulation of cholesterol in the walls, the blood flow is reduced and various problems are generated. A complete obstruction, in fact, causes an acute heart attack. Through hemodynamics, it is possible to discover which artery is blocked and then develop the appropriate treatment.
In numerous hospitals in different corners of the world there are specific hemodynamic rooms with the clear objective of being able to carry out techniques and treatments in order to know the real state of the patients' hearts. Thus, for example, it is common for these spaces to carry out actions or interventions such as the following:
-Angiograms and ventriculograms, which are performed to know not only how the heart works but also how the pulmonary arteries and the aorta are as well as to find out if the valves are doing their job correctly.
-Catheterization, which is an invasive and complex process that allows studying and knowing the state of the heart as well as its operation. Specifically, it is very common for this to be carried out in patients who have suffered a heart attack since it allows us to know what damage this situation has caused them. It is important to know that the patient who undergoes this technique introducing a catheter through the groin artery, once it is finished, must remain 24 hours without moving the leg.
-Coronary angiography, which is a technique that seeks to determine if there are obstructions or narrowings of some kind in the coronary arteries. In this way, the real state of the patient can be known and in the event that they are detected, a treatment will be given and the appropriate measures will be taken so that the aforementioned arteries work properly.
In addition to all the above, we must emphasize that coronary angiography is considered to be complementary to catheterization.