Cardiology, or cardiovascular medicine, is the internal medicine specialty that deals with disorders of the heart and blood vessels. It involves the evaluation of cardiovascular symptoms, such as chest pain, shortness of breath, palpitations, dizziness, fainting spells or heart murmurs (abnormal heart sounds). Cardiologists are trained to evaluate and work up such complaints and diagnose the underlying cardiovascular disorder.
Most patients referred for cardiologist evaluation at NUHCS will be first seen in the general cardiology clinic. In this clinic, the cardiologist first evaluates the patient's symptoms by taking a detailed medical history and performing an examination of the cardiovascular (heart and blood vessel) system. Subsequently, patients will undergo specialized cardiovascular examinations to clinch the eventual diagnosis.
Common specialized cardiovascular investigations include:
Electrocardiogram (ECG)
- Rest electrocardiogram
- Exercise stress electrocardiogram
Imaging studies
- Echocardiogram (ultrasound study of the heart)
- Computed tomography (CT) of the heart
- Cardiac nuclear scan
- Cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging
- Vascular (blood vessel) imaging
Invasive cardiac investigations
- Coronary angiography (invasive study of the arteries of the heart)
- Right heart catheterization
- Electrophysiology study
After establishing the diagnosis, cardiologists will provide the necessary patient education and offer the appropriate intervention, for the patient's condition. Such interventions can range from lifestyle modification to medication prescription, as well as catheter-based invasive treatments. For more complicated cases requiring sub-specialised cardiology care, the patient might be referred to sub-specialty cardiology clinics, such as the arrhythmia clinic, congenital heart clinic, heart failure clinic, valvular heart disease clinic, women's heart clinic, amongst others.
Cardiologists at the National University Heart Centre (NUHCS) are trained to diagnose and treat all diseases involving the cardiovascular system. The conditions we treat range from managing cardiovascular risk factors for primary prevention of cardiovascular diseases, to tertiary-level treatment of advanced heart diseases.
Common cardiovascular conditions treated by NUHCS cardiologists include, but are not limited to
Primary prevention of heart diseases
- Hypertension
- Hyperlipidaemia (high blood cholesterol)
- Diabetes mellitus
Diseases of the heart blood vessels
Diseases of the heart electrical conduction system
- Atrial fibrillation
- Ectopic/ premature heart beats
- Syncope/ fainting spells
- Care of implanted pacemaker devices
- Sudden cardiac death syndromes
Diseases of the heart muscles
Valvular heart diseases
- Aortic valve stenosis/ regurgitation
- Mitral valve prolapse
- Mitral valve stenosis/ regurgitation
- Tricuspid valve stenosis/ regurgitation
- Pulmonary valve stenosis/ regurgitation
Diseases of the lung blood vessels
Congenital heart diseases
- Atrial septal defects
- Ventricular septal defects
- Patent foramen ovale
- Patent ductus arteriosus
- Tetralogy of Fallot
- Transposition of the great vessels
Vascular medicine
Heart diseases in special patient populations
Cardiac emergencies
At NUHCS, we employ a multi-disciplinary approach for the management of chronic diseases. This is to ensure patients receive comprehensive, holistic care by various members of the healthcare team. We offer a whole range of treatment for the various cardiovascular conditions. They include
Lifestyle intervention
- Diet advice
- Exercise prescription
- Rehabilitative activities
Medication use and titration
Invasive treatment
- Percutaneous coronary intervention
- Radiofrequency ablation of cardiac arrhythmias
- Cardiac implantable electronic devices
- Cardiac pacemaker
- Implantable cardiac defibrillators
- Cardiac re-synchronisation devices
- Structural heart disease intervention
- Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI)
- Percutaneous mitral valve repair
- Percutaneous left atrial appendage occlusion for stroke prevention
- Percutaneous closure of atrial septal defect
- Percutaneous closure of patent ductus arteriosus
- Percutaneous mechanical circulatory support for cardiogenic shock
- Intra-aortic balloon pump
- Catheter-based ventricular assist device implantation
