Heart Failure Treatment in Kolkata
Heart failure is an ailment that can send your world spinning around you. Suddenly, you find yourself being told by a doctor about your ejection fraction and fluid retention. Heart failure treatment in Kolkata has reached great heights, and the city now boasts of some of the finest cardiology in Eastern India. Which means that you don’t need to go all the way to Delhi and Chennai for the best medical care possible. This guide from Dr. Sanjib Patra will help you understand everything related to the hospitals, doctors, and most importantly, the heart failure treatments in Kolkata.
What is Heart Failure?
Heart failure does not imply that the heart has ceased functioning altogether; rather, it implies that the heart is unable to pump blood as effectively as it should. Thus, the body is denied the amount of oxygen and nutrients it requires, and symptoms begin to manifest themselves.
The silver lining is that with a proper cardiologist in Kolkata leading the treatment, heart failure can be controlled. Many patients end up having normal lives despite their condition. But first things first; finding the right hospital and doctor is key.
Leading Hospitals for Heart Failure Care in Kolkata
The selection of a hospital is one of the most significant decisions to make at this juncture. First and foremost, you should prioritize a hospital that offers 24×7 emergency cardiac services, an intensive ICU system, and experienced doctors.
Desun Hospital
Desun Hospital leads this area, having established itself as Kolkata’s first superspeciality hospital. It is not only NABH certified and JCI certified but also has extensive experience in dealing with various types of medical conditions, including cardiac disorders.
The hospital operates a Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery (CTVS) department with specialists working around the clock. ICU beds with individual ventilators, and a rooftop helipad for emergency transports. And the latter is especially important because in case of an emergency, even minutes are crucial.
Apollo Hospitals
Another reputable hospital is Apollo Hospitals, which is known for its high level of service and experience working in this area. This is a network of hospitals that has been working in India for several decades already, so it has a lot of expertise in the cardiology field as well as modern equipment and procedures for heart failure treatment.
Prominent Cardiologists and Specialists in Kolkata
However, finding the right heart failure treatment in Kolkata is, in truth, half the battle. A skilled specialist will not only help address your health problem but also explain the diagnosis in simple terms and create a treatment regimen based on your lifestyle and daily routine, and not solely based on your test results.
Dr. Sanjib Patra
For example, Dr. Sanjib Patra is the Director and Head of Cardiology at Desun Hospital who specializes in interventional cardiology. His education is from AIIMS, and he has received several fellowships for complex coronary intervention in Italy and Toronto for electrophysiology.
The procedures Dr. Patra performs include pacemaker implantation, coronary angioplasty, and ICD placement. This also includes various devices for heart failure, including cardiac resynchronization therapy. One of the most frequently heard reviews from his patients is that he explains the treatment regimen in detail.
Dr. Aritra Konar
One more cardiologist is Dr. Aritra Konar, who holds the position of Consultant Interventional Cardiologist. He has vast practical experience in performing coronary angiography, angioplasty, permanent pacemaker implantation, right heart catheterization, and many other procedures. His patients often praise Dr. Konar for the fact that he takes time to explain complex diagnoses in detail.
Available Treatment Options in the City
Heart failure treatment in Kolkata is not always a one-size-fits-all affair. The initial stages after diagnosis would require you to take drugs and make changes to your lifestyle. But if the disease worsens or your heartbeat is disrupted, we can try other treatment methods. Here are two methods that are highly efficient for people with heart failure in Kolkata:
Physiological Pacemakers
These are not your old pacemakers. The physiological pacemaker delivers an electrical signal that mimics your heart’s natural rhythm much better than older pacemakers do. For heart failure patients, another type of pacemaker known as Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy (CRT) uses signals to make both the left and right ventricles of the heart work together again.
For example, a heart failure patient who had both his heart chambers working out of sequence, making him breathless and tired, would actually see improvements in just a few weeks after the device was implanted. The procedure takes less time and is done in a few days.
Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting (CABG)
In the case of heart failure caused by blocked coronary arteries, the solution lies in bypass grafts. The process of heart failure treatment in Kolkata includes creating a new passage for blood to flow around the blocked coronary arteries using another blood vessel from somewhere else in the body.
In other words, the procedure helps restore normal blood flow through the heart muscle. CABG is major surgery, but success rates are quite good. CABG is performed at Desun Hospital and also Apollo Hospitals in Kolkata.
What to Expect During Your Treatment Journey
- First, expect a comprehensive test for diagnosis — ECG, echocardiography, blood work, and, in some cases, an angiogram.
- Next, your doctor will decide on the necessity of using drugs only or the need to implant a device or perform surgery.
- If you need a pacemaker or CRT implantation, our team will perform the surgery under local anesthesia, which takes several hours.
- If you undergo a CABG (coronary artery bypass graft), expect to spend a week in the hospital followed by several weeks of rehabilitation.
- Post-procedure visits are mandatory — this way, your doctors will detect issues at the earliest stage.
- It is the same story with lifestyle changes — they are as important as the operation.
Making the Right Choice
No one heart failure treatment in Kolkata can be considered ideal in this case, since it entirely depends on your particular case, your condition, and your comfort levels with the physician. Thus, the best thing for you would be to arrange an appointment, ask all necessary questions, and possibly get another opinion as well. But most importantly, Dr. Sanjib Patra recommends not putting off getting help due to your fears. The earlier you seek assistance, the better it will be for you.