(Johns Creek, GA) – Emory Johns Creek hospital is now performing life-saving emergency angioplasty, John Quinlivan,  CEO of the hospital has announced.  “We have outstanding interventional cardiologists and are proud to be able to offer the community access to this state-of-the-art care, and access to the nationally recognized standard of care for people suffering from an acute heart attack and for the prevention of heart attack.”

“Emergency angioplasty is a procedure in which the interventional cardiologist opens clogged arteries with tiny balloon-type devices in order to restore blood flow,” explained Gregory Robertson, MD,  interventional cardiologist and Medical Director of the Cardiac Cath Lab at EJCH.   Dr. Robertson has performed more than 8,000 interventional procedures in his twenty four years of practice and was one of the pioneers of emergency angioplasty for heart attack patients. Performing emergency angioplasty within 90 minutes of arrival at the hospital has proven to be the most effective intervention in saving lives and minimizing heart damage for people suffering an acute heart attack.  A heart attack occurs when a major artery supplying blood to the heart becomes blocked, generally from a build-up of plaque.  According to the American Heart Association, the symptoms include:

• Chest discomfort, usually in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes or that goes away and comes back. It can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain.  

• Pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach.  

• Shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort.   

• Breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness

Anyone experiencing these symptoms should call 9-1-1 right away.

Emory Johns Creek Hospital has achieved designation from the State of Georgia to provide angioplasty and cardiac stent placement through its PCI designation.  The Heart & Vascular Institute of Emory Johns Creek Hospital includes a state-of-the-art cardiac and vascular laboratory, a 64 slice CT scanner which enables non-invasive diagnostic exams to assess coronary artery disease, an angiography suite for interventional radiology, and a cardiac catheterization lab.  EJCH also offers diagnostic cardiac catheterization to diagnose blockages in coronary arteries, cardioversion to correct irregular heart rhythms, implantation of pacemaker devices to maintain and regulate heart rhythm and implantation of defibrillator devices to automatically terminate and correct life threatening arrhythmias. The hospital also provides angioplasty for peripheral arterial disease. These services complement other extensive diagnostic, prevention and treatment services.

Emory Johns Creek Hospital, located in the heart of Johns Creek, is known for its state-of-the-art technology in a luxurious, hotel-like setting.  As a community hospital participating in most insurance plans, services include 24/7 emergency care, state-of-the-art all digital imaging including a 64 slice CT,  MRI,  The Birth Place with Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, 24-hour anesthesiologists, intensive care, advanced cardiac care, vascular medicine and surgery, rehabilitation services and women’s services.  Emory Johns Creek Hospital is home to the Atlanta Bariatric Center, designated a Center of Excellence by the American Society of Bariatric Surgeons.