Best Interventional Cardiologist in Rajkot

What an interventional cardiologist actually does

An interventional cardiologist is a heart specialist who, in addition to general cardiology training, has done an additional one-to-two years of dedicated training in catheter-based procedures. Instead of open surgery, the work is done through a 2 mm puncture in the wrist or groin, using thin wires and catheters guided by live X-ray imaging in a cathlab. The same approach that diagnoses a blocked artery (coronary angiography) can also treat it (angioplasty with stenting) — often in the same sitting.

Dr. Nikhila Pachani completed her DM Cardiology at the Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences, Kochi, followed by senior cathlab practice at U.N. Mehta Institute of Cardiology and Research Centre, Ahmedabad. Her work in Rajkot covers the full interventional spectrum: routine diagnostic angiography, single and multi-vessel angioplasty, primary PCI for acute heart attacks 24×7, chronic total occlusion (CTO) PCI, left-main and bifurcation work, peripheral vascular intervention, and implantable device placement.

Complex PCI — what makes it different

Most coronary angioplasties are straightforward — a wire, a balloon, a stent. Complex PCI is the small but critical fraction where standard techniques are not enough: a chronic total occlusion that has been closed for months or years; a left-main artery that supplies most of the heart muscle and demands perfect stent placement; a bifurcation where two arteries meet and need careful sizing; a heavily calcified vessel that needs rotational atherectomy or intravascular lithotripsy before a stent can be expanded.

Dr. Nikhila has trained specifically in CTO at the CTO Workshop, Vadodara (2023) and at AICT–AsiaPCR, Singapore (2023) — two of the leading regional educational platforms for complex PCI. The Backbone Medicity cathlab is equipped for these procedures with the Philips Azurion-series ceiling-mounted system, IVUS guidance and rotational atherectomy capability.

Devices: pacemaker, AICD, CRT-D

• Permanent pacemaker — for symptomatic bradycardia, complete heart block, sick sinus syndrome.
• AICD (Automated Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator) — for patients at risk of sudden cardiac death, typically with low ejection fraction or prior life-threatening arrhythmia.
• CRT-D / CRT-P — for selected heart failure patients with electrical dyssynchrony; can dramatically improve quality of life and survival.
• Loop recorder insertion — for unexplained syncope or palpitations.

What happens on the day of an angioplasty

Patients are usually admitted the morning of the procedure or the night before. Routine blood tests, ECG and an echocardiogram are completed. In the cathlab, the procedure is done under local anaesthesia — the patient is fully awake but does not feel pain. Most cases are completed in 45–90 minutes; complex cases may take longer. Patients typically walk back to their room within 4–6 hours and are discharged the next day.

A clear written discharge summary is provided, including stent details, medicines, lifestyle plan, and the follow-up schedule. Dual antiplatelet therapy (usually aspirin plus clopidogrel, ticagrelor or prasugrel) is essential for 6–12 months after a drug-eluting stent — never stop it without speaking to your cardiologist.

Emergency primary PCI for heart attack

Time is muscle. In an acute heart attack, every 30 minutes of delay reduces the survival benefit of opening the blocked artery. Backbone Medicity runs a 24×7 primary PCI service — call Backbone Medicity on +91 74108 13108 so the cathlab team is ready before the patient arrives. Do NOT drive yourself if chest pain is ongoing; call 108 for an ambulance.

For acute STEMI patients within Rajkot, door-to-balloon times under 60 minutes are routinely achieved. For Saurashtra districts within 2 hours, transferring directly to a primary PCI centre often gives better outcomes than starting thrombolysis locally — discuss with your physician.