Spire Bristol Hospital opens new £1.5m cardiac catheterisation lab expanding treatment options for patients with complex heart conditions

Spire Bristol Hospital has opened a new £1.5m cardiac catheter laboratory¹ (“cath lab”) expanding treatment options available to NHS and private patients with complex heart conditions.  

40-year-old database administrator Nic was one of the first patients to be cared for at this new facility in Spire Bristol Hospital. Nic contacted Spire after suffering three strokes in the past 18 months. “After a nine-month wait for a bubble echo scan, the NHS found evidence of a Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO), which is a hole in the heart that didn't close correctly when I was born. This was almost certainly the cause of the strokes.”  

Nic was placed on the NHS waiting list but faced a four-month wait for surgery. Fortunately, Nic had private medical insurance through his employer so chose to have his procedure at Spire Bristol Hospital. “Having done some research into PFOs I discovered that Spire Bristol offered the closure procedure. I have had successful surgery with Spire Healthcare before, so I decided to contact Spire and my insurance company to see if I could get things moving quicker”.

Just over a month later Nic had surgery at Spire Bristol Hospital to have the PFO closed. “I’m so glad I reached out to Spire. From start to finish everyone I’ve see and spoken to has been so friendly and professional. The heart surgery was amazingly painless. It’s only been two weeks since the operation, but it’s already made the world of difference. I had my most recent stroke the day before I brought my new house. Since then, I’ve constantly been wondering if I’ll have to sell it if I have another stoke. Now I don’t have to worry and can get on with just enjoying life.”  

Procedures undertaken within the cath lab include transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI); cardiac catheterisation; coronary angiography; angioplasty; ablations; stent placement, and pacemaker implantation. These can help treat patients with common heart conditions such as coronary heart disease and angina, while also prevent heart attacks. Data from the National Institute for Cardiovascular Outcomes Research shows Spire Bristol Hospital delivered some of the highest volume of ablation procedures in England with 264 performed in 2023/2024 – 164 procedures more than the minimum recommended by the British Heart Rhythm Society. 

The investment into Spire Bristol’s new cath lab includes the latest advancement in 3D mapping technology providing cardiologists with enhanced clarity and precision in heart imaging, which leads to more accurate procedures. The equipment features dual rotating cameras that capture simultaneous front and side views of the patient’s heart in real time while the patient remains comfortably rested. The result is a comprehensive, high-resolution visualisation of the patient’s heart that significantly improves diagnostic accuracy and supports more informed clinical decisions. 

Spire Bristol Hospital cardiology team standing in the new cardiac catheterisation lab 

Justin Ash, CEO for Spire Healthcare, commented: “Investing in the latest technology such as this new cath lab at Spire Bristol demonstrates our commitment to deliver more complex healthcare to people when and where they need it. With NHS patients being referred to our new Bristol cath lab for treatment, we’re playing an ever-greater part to reduce the number of people waiting on NHS lists for urgent complex heart care. It also helps Spire Bristol meet the region’s healthcare needs by running great services that attract highly skilled staff.”

Dr Mark Turner, Cardiology Consultant at Spire Bristol Hospital, said: “I am thrilled to see the launch of our new cardiology catheter lab, where we perform advanced keyhole procedures that help avoid the need for open heart surgery. This investment demonstrates our commitment to delivering cutting-edge cardiovascular care to our patients, so they can benefit from the latest procedures and recover more quickly. The new cath lab offers real-time, high-resolution imaging of the heart from multiple angles. This level of clarity and precision is what we need to allow us to diagnose and treat complex heart conditions with accuracy, safety and confidence, further improving the patient experience.”  

Reference:
1. A cardiac catheterisation laboratory, or cath lab, is a specialised area in a hospital where cardiac consultants perform diagnostic and interventional procedures on the heart and blood vessels using catheters. These procedures are minimally invasive, meaning they don't require open heart surgery. Instead, a consultant will access the patient’s heart and blood vessels through small punctures in the skin, typically in the groin or arm.