FIRST ADVANCED PROCEDURES FOR PERMANENTLY RESOLVING HEART DEFECT SUCCESSFULLY PERFORMED

BANJA LUKA, APRIL 9 /SRNA/ – The first procedures for implanting an occluder have been successfully performed at the Cardiology Clinic of the Republika Srpska University Clinical Centre, making a top-level method for the permanent treatment of a heart defect available to patients in Srpska.

This defect is one of the leading causes of stroke among younger and middle-aged people. UCC Director General Nikola Šobot said that interventional cardiologists perform this procedure without a scalpel and without opening the chest, the UCC announced. "The procedure is carried out through the venous system by inserting a catheter through the groin all the way to the heart. At the site of the defect, we place an occluder, a special device made of nitinol that resembles two small connected umbrellas and permanently closes the opening," Šobot explained. He added that the procedure is performed under anesthesia and that patients can return to their regular activities after 24 hours, knowing that their heart problem has been permanently resolved. Head of the Cardiology Clinic Tamara Kovačević-Preradović said that occluder implantation is a key preventive measure that literally closes the door to potential disability or death in patients who are often in the prime of their lives. She explained that the procedure involves closing a patent foramen ovale, a small "hole" in the heart's septum that in some people remains open after birth. "Although it often causes no symptoms, this defect can become a dangerous pathway through which blood clots from the venous system pass into the arterial system and travel directly to the brain, causing so-called cryptogenic strokes," Kovačević-Preradović warned. With the introduction of this procedure, the University Clinical Centre of Republika Srpska has confirmed its status as a leading medical institution in the region. The UCC noted that patients will no longer have to travel to medical centres abroad for expensive procedures, as this technology of the future, along with the proven expertise of local doctors, is now permanently available in Banja Luka. The interventions were performed by a team of doctors with the professional support of Neven Čače from the Rijeka Clinical Hospital Centre. The team included Tamara Kovačević Preradović, Nikola Šobot, Željko Živanović, Bojan Stanetić, Sanja Stojković, Ljiljana Kos, anesthesiologist Jelena Morača Gajić, along with teams of technicians from the Cardiology Clinic and the Anesthesiology Clinic. This achievement sends a strong message about continuous investment in knowledge and equipment, with one goal – preserving the lives and health of Republika Srpska citizens, the UKC stated.