Structural heart program in Chattanooga

At Parkridge Medical Group, our structural heart program is a key component of our comprehensive cardiovascular care services. To ensure our patients receive the highest levels of treatment for structural heart disease, we have assembled under the same roof a multidisciplinary team that includes cardiac imaging specialists, structural interventional cardiologists, cardiac surgeons and advanced practice providers.

We provide a full complement of care for a broad range of heart valve diseases, including care for high-risk patients. Our heart specialists work together to identify the most effective treatment plan for each patient and use advanced technology throughout the process.

Schedule an appointment with one of our cardiovascular disease specialists.

What is structural heart disease?

Structural heart disease is a specific type of heart disease caused by a weakness in the heart's structure — its walls, valves or muscles. While these diseases can be present at birth, some develop over time through aging, general wear and tear or as a result of another disease.

Types of structural heart disease and symptoms

Similar to the overall concept of cardiac disease, there are several types of structural heart disease. Each type has its own set of symptoms and challenges, but all are related to the heart tissue or the valves. Structural heart disease includes these conditions:

  • Aortic regurgitation
  • Atrial septal defects
  • Aortic stenosis
  • Aortic valve stenosis
  • Hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy
  • Holes in the heart (atrial septal defect and patent foramen ovale)
  • Infective endocarditis
  • Left atrial appendage atrial fibrillation
  • Left ventricular hypertrophy
  • Mitral regurgitation
  • Mitral stenosis
  • Mitral valve prolapse and/or regurgitation
  • Myocarditis
  • Paravalvular/paraprosthetic valvular leak
  • Patent ductus arterioles
  • Pericardial disorders
  • Pulmonary regurgitation
  • Pulmonary stenosis
  • Pulmonary vein stenosis
  • Tricuspid stenosis
  • Tricuspid valve regurgitation
  • Ventricular septal defects

Depending on what type of structural heart disease you have, you may experience various symptoms such as:

  • Chest pain
  • Extreme fatigue
  • High blood pressure
  • Irregular heartbeats
  • Kidney dysfunction
  • Leg cramps
  • Shortness of breath
  • Stroke

Diagnosing structural heart disease

Properly diagnosing the cause of a heart problem is the first step to developing the best course of treatment. Our specialists use the most advanced cardiac screening and imaging technology to identify and monitor structural heart problems, including:

  • Ankle-brachial index
  • Cardiac catheterization
  • Cardiac computerized tomography (CT)
  • Cardiac 1.5T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
  • Cardiac positron emission tomography (PET)
  • Chest X-ray
  • CT angiography
  • Echocardiogram
  • Electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG)
  • Electrophysiology (EP) studies
  • Nuclear stress test
  • Rest multigated acquisition (MUGA) scan test
  • Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) with 3D
  • Transthoracic echocardiography – 2D and 3D with strain
  • Tilt table test
  • Treadmill stress test
  • 3D/4D intravascular ultrasound
  • Vascular ultrasound study

Structural heart disease treatment

The cardiologists, interventional cardiologists, cardiac surgeons and electrophysiologists within our cardiology program work together to determine the best care option for you and your condition. Our structural heart team regularly takes on challenging cases, including those who have had several heart surgeries before, people with preexisting medical conditions, elderly and overweight individuals, and people turned down for surgery at other hospitals.

Our multidisciplinary approach determines whether mediation or a surgical procedure will be most effective on your journey to recovery. When surgery is needed, our physicians are experienced in a wide range of procedures, including:

  • Alcohol septal ablation and septal myectomy
  • Balloon aortic valvuloplasty
  • Left atrial appendage closure (LAAC)
  • Percutaneous and surgical atrial septal defect repair
  • Percutaneous and surgical patent foramen ovale (PFO) closure
  • Percutaneous and surgical ventricular septal defect repair
  • Percutaneous paravalvular leak closure
  • Percutaneous right-sided vegetation removal
  • Procedures to correct unsuccessful valve surgeries
  • Surgical aortic valve replacement
  • Surveillance monitoring of mild and moderate valvular and other structural heart problems
  • Traditional, robotic or minimally invasive surgical repair or replacement of valve lesions
  • Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR)
  • Transcatheter mitral valve repair (TVMR)
  • Transcatheter pulmonic valve replacement

We also offer minimally invasive procedures to help you recover quickly and get back to your everyday life.