The Dominican Republic’s cardiovascular care landscape has entered a new era, after the Center for Diagnosis and Advanced Medicine and Medical Conferences and Telemedicine (Cedimat) announced it has successfully completed the country’s first-ever coronary intravascular balloon lithotripsy procedure. This breakthrough introduces an innovative, cutting-edge technology designed to address one of interventional cardiology’s most persistent challenges: treating heavily calcified coronary artery lesions.
The landmark operation was led by Carlos García Lithgow, Cedimat’s lead coordinator for Hemodynamics and Interventional Cardiology, working alongside a dedicated, highly trained multidisciplinary medical team. For the Dominican Republic’s health sector, the successful completion of this procedure marks a defining milestone that raises the bar for domestic cardiovascular treatment capabilities.
Unlike traditional treatment methods for calcified coronary lesions, coronary intravascular lithotripsy works by delivering targeted pressure waves that gently reshape hardened calcium deposits built up along the walls of coronary arteries. This modification of calcified tissue creates far more space and flexibility, enabling clinicians to fully expand the procedure balloon and place the required stent more effectively and completely than older approaches.
Per Cedimat’s official statement on the breakthrough, the new technology delivers a host of tangible benefits for both care providers and patients. It enables safer interventional procedures, optimizes long-term clinical results for patients, and opens up new life-saving treatment options for people living with complex coronary artery disease—especially patients with severe artery calcification who were previously left with limited effective treatment choices.
García Lithgow emphasized that the integration of this technology into Cedimat’s practice represents a significant leap forward for interventional cardiology across the Dominican Republic. He explained, “Calcified coronary artery disease is one of the biggest challenges during interventional procedures. Intravascular lithotripsy allows us to modify calcium safely and effectively, optimizing stent implantation and improving the prognosis for our patients.”