Cardiology (Heart)

Cardiac rehabilitation provides individualized plans to increase your physical activity and fitness through medically supervised and monitored exercise in Barron, Bloomer, Eau Claire, Menomonie and Osseo.

The cardiovascular surgery team’s commitment to bring you the latest techniques allows heart patients to remain close to their homes and families. Learn more.

Cardiology patients have the opportunity to participate in clinical trials coordinated by our Clinical Research Department. In offering clinical trials, our goal is to improve the quality of care and quality of life for patients through research studies and collaborative research with our colleagues throughout Mayo Clinic. Participation in research leads to new discoveries that will impact our patients today and in the future. We recognize the importance of clinical trial access for patients and physicians to optimize the availability of treatment options and allow for participation while remaining close to home.

Learn more about clinical research.

When you have chest pain, our highly skilled and expertly trained emergency personnel will perform tests to see if your pain is being caused by a heart attack. Within minutes, you'll be given an EKG and be evaluated.

If we find that you are having a heart attack, life-saving treatment will begin immediately.

If the cause of your pain is uncertain, we'll keep you under observation and do further evaluation to determine the cause and significance of your symptoms.

Heart Attack Warning Signs

Half of all people who have heart attacks wait two hours or more before seeking treatment. And half — 300,000 Americans each year — die before reaching the hospital. A heart attack occurs when arteries supplying your heart with blood and oxygen become blocked. With each passing minute, more tissue is deprived of oxygen and deteriorates or dies. Restoring blood flow within the first hour when most damage occurs is critical to survival.

The American Heart Association lists the following warning signs of a heart attack. Be aware that you may not have them at all and that symptoms may come and go.

• Uncomfortable pressure, fullness or squeezing pain the center of your chest, lasting more than a few minutes
• Pain spreading to your shoulders, neck or arms
• Light-headedness, fainting, sweating, nausea or shortness of breath

Whether you suspect a heart attack of think it's just indigestion, act immediately:

• Call 911 first.
• Sit quietly or lie down if you are feeling faint. Breathe slowly and deeply.
• Chew an aspirin, unless you are allergic to it.

• Ambulatory blood pressure monitor: This monitor helps cardiologists at Mayo Clinic Health System in Eau Claire determine if you have blood pressure problems. It will record your blood pressure for 24 hours while you go about your activities of daily living.
• Ambulatory EKG monitoring: Cardiologists feel it is beneficial to view your heart rhythm while you are in your normal environment. This can be done with either a Holter monitor, which records your rhythm for 24 to 48 hours, or an event monitor, which records your rhythm for two to four weeks.
• Coronary CTA: Physicians use advanced X-ray technology — called coronary computed tomographic angiogram, or CTA — to see highly detailed pictures of your heart. These sophisticated images help doctors detect early-stage heart disease so they can help you make changes to your lifestyle and stop a heart attack before it happens. Cardiology and radiology specialists work together using coronary CTA to see the inner workings of your heart and blood vessels without an invasive and lengthy procedure.
• Echocardiography: An echocardiogram uses sound waves to produce images of your heart. The echocardiography lab in Eau Claire is one of a select group of accredited laboratories in the entire nation. The team in the echo lab uses sophisticated diagnostic devices to accurately and painlessly diagnose problems with the function, blood supply and valves of the heart.
• Electrocardiogram: Our health care providers may recommend an electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG) to assess the health and function of your heart. This is accomplished by measuring your heart's electrical activity through electrodes placed on the surface of your skin.
• Heart scan: A heart scan is a painless test that takes just a few minutes as you lie on an exam table. But those minutes can make a big difference in your life. Our advanced technology detects calcium buildup on coronary arteries, measuring your risk of a heart attack. You will get a CT heart scan; calcium score, showing your risk of coronary artery disease; and follow-up advice. The cost is $275. Medicare does not cover the cost of this screening service. We do not file insurance claims for the heart scan. To make an appointment, call 715-838-3926.
• Exercise stress test: A stress test is one of the ways our health care providers can look at how well your heart functions while it is working harder than at rest. They may choose to stress your heart with exercise, drugs or a combination of both.

Sometimes the heart's electrical system doesn't work properly. This may result in abnormal heart rhythms called arrhythmias. During an arrhythmia, the heart may beat too slowly, too rapidly or irregularly.

We are the only health care facility in northwest Wisconsin that offers electrophysiology studies and procedures. Our specialists can diagnose and treat your heart rhythm problems.

During an electrophysiology study, electrodes are guided through blood vessels to your heart and used to test the function of your heart's electrical system. This can identify whether you currently have or may develop heart rhythm problems.

Some of these abnormal heart rhythms can be treated with a special procedure called an ablation.

Pacemakers/Defibrillators

We provide a full range of services for patients who need implanted pacemakers, defibrillators or biventricular devices.

Services include diagnosis and treatment of rhythm disorders, as well as device implantation and management using state-of-the-art technology, such as internet-based follow up.

More than 6 million Americans suffer from angina, or chest pain, with as many as 350,000 new cases per year. As the group of people with heart disease increases, so does the group of patients who do not achieve complete relief of their angina despite current aggressive therapies, such as angioplasty and bypass surgery.

Our Cardiac Center offers external counterpulsation (ECP). This is a cardiac care therapy that provides relief from angina without surgery or medication. The treatment is designed to improve heart function by increasing blood flow to the heart muscle and decreasing the heart's workload. Basically, ECP improves the balance between the amount of oxygen the heart needs and the amount it receives.

External counterpulsation is a safe, well-tolerated procedure for treating angina with no significant side effect. Patients report:

• Fewer and less intense episodes of angina
• Increased quality of life
• Return to a more active lifestyle
• Decreased or eliminated medications

ECP is performed one hour at a time in the clinic treatment room while the patient reads or watches TV. Comfortable pneumatic pressure cuffs around the legs systematically inflate and deflate to the rhythm of the patient's heartbeat. ECP moves blood from the legs to assist and increase blood flow in the heart muscle.

As a result, ECP offers patients the possibility of returning to normal, daily activities.

For more information, call our Cardiac Center at 715-838-6320 or 1-888-838-4777, ext. 8-6320 (toll-free).

Our heart catheterization lab offers diagnosis and treatment of heart conditions with nonoperative techniques, such as angioplasty and stenting. Angioplasty can stop heart attacks as they are happening by immediately restoring blood flow to the heart. This treatment is known to prevent heart damage and permit you to return to your usual activities sooner.

Balloon angioplasty involves the opening of a blocked coronary artery with a tiny balloon. Along with this procedure, cardiologists may insert small wire tubes called stents into the affected arteries to keep them open.

You have access to Mayo Clinic pediatric cardiologists who make routine visits to the Eau Claire campus twice a month in our Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine Department at the Clairemont Campus. These physicians are specifically trained to treat young patients with complex heart abnormalities.

Patients typically are referred by a primary care physician.