Heart Catheterization scheduled...

Parrish has been scheduled for his 'heart cath' for Oct. Below is info about the procedure:

Why perform a catheterization?

Heart cath helps cardiologists gain information needed to fully evaluate a condition and recommend treatment for your child. It is a test that shows how the heart chambers, valves, and vessels are formed, and how they are functioning. A cath also provides cardiologists with information about specific areas of the heart and lungs. For patients who need surgery, a cath provides surgeons detailed information not available through other testing, such as the precise location of abnormalities and the specific structure of your child's heart. A heart cath may also be used therapeutically, to treat a condition or to correct a problem.

What is a heart catheterization?
Caths are performed in a specially equipped cath lab by a cardiologist with the help of a trained team of nurses and technicians. It is similar to a surgical procedure, although there are usually no incisions or stitches. To prevent infection, the staff wears sterile gowns, hats, and masks and the patient is covered with a sterile drape. The patient is sedated and a local anaesthetic is used to numb the groin area. This injection is the only discomfort your child should experience during the procedure. The anesthetic is similar to Novocaine--used by your dentist. A thin, flexible tube, known as a catheter, is then inserted into a vein and sometimes an artery, usually in the groin.
Once the catheter is in the blood vessel, the cardiologist uses a fluoroscope (similar to an X-ray machine) to guide the catheter into the different areas of the heart. The movement of the catheter within the heart is not painful or uncomfortable. While the catheter is in the heart, several procedures are performed:

Blood presssures in different heart chambers and blood vessels are recorded.

Oxygen content of the blood in each heart chamber is evaluated.

Dye is injected through the catheter.

Angiograms (x-ray movies of the dye's movement) are filmed so that the details of the cardiac problem are recorded.

The cath lasts from one to three hours. Afterwards, the only outward sign of the procedure will be a pressure bandage applied to the cath insertion site. Before your child is discharged, the cardiologist will review the preliminary findings with you. Later, these data and findings are reviewed by cardiologists and surgeons . This gives your child's cardiologist "second and third" opinions for any decisions made in your child's care.