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Cardiac catheterization involves threading a thin hollow tube through a blood vessel in the leg and into the heart. After the catheter is removed, doctors commonly apply manual pressure over the femoral artery in the thigh for up to 40 minutes and patients are instructed to lie on their backs for six hours or more.
Indiana University cardiologist and genetic researcher Dr. Keith March remembers thinking there had to be a better way to prevent bleeding and promote healing of the blood vessel. In a recent interview at the "Saturday Evening Post Health Show" studio, Dr. March told us about the Perclose closure system for which he holds a series of patents.
"The device is essentially a 'smart' sewing machine that can be placed at the tip of a catheter," he explained. "It senses the exact location of the hole in a blood vessel and then closes it with one stitch. Subsequently, no blood leaks from that hole after cardiac catheterization."
Use of the new technology helps patients recover from the procedure more quickly and comfortably. Three years after its introduction, the device is being used to treat more than half a million patients a year.
"That is many more patients than I would ever see in my lifetime," said Dr. March. "I am excited to see that kind of an impact from the original concept."
We asked Dr. March, who is director of the Indiana Center for Vascular Biology, about his current research interests.
"I am particularly interested in understanding how we can keep vessels open and how we can help people to grow their own vessels," the cardiologist said. "Some people grow new vessels around blockages, but other people do not. We believe there are ways we can use genes to help people grow their own cells. Our dream is a medical bypass or a genetic bypass instead of the surgical bypass."
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