KUWAIT: Senior specialist in Cardiology and Arterial Catheterization, Dr. Yahya Al-Ansari, said the Arterial Catheterization Laboratory (Cat Lab) at Sabah Al-Ahmad Heart Center (Amiri Hospital) renders many services for patients, adding that the arterial and blood vessels unit was able to help 250 patients in the outpatient clinics. They also carried out around 90 catheterizations for peripheral arteries to treat resistance to hypertension medications. The Cat Lab is considered the first of its kind in the Gulf.

“We have clinics for patients who suffer from arterial problems. The majority of these people have foot injuries. We receive diabetic patients with wounds because of ischemia and our role is to open up arteries, he said, adding that artery problems result from irregular pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol levels, smoking, a lack of physical activity, and non-compliance with medications. Al-Ansari advised patients to comply with the doctor’s instructions and medications, adding that symptoms of ischemic arteries include pain in the foot or leg.