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What
is EECP®? In an EECP® session, the patient lies on a padded table. Three inflatable cuffs—similar to blood pressure cuffs—are placed around the calves, lower thighs, and upper thighs. The person’s heart rate is monitored by an electrocardiography machine, which, in conjunction with a computer, regulates the inflation and deflation of the cuffs. During the phase of the cardiac cycle when the heart is at rest (diastole), the cuffs are rapidly inflated in sequential order beginning with the cuffs at the calves and working upward. Just before the heart contracts (systole), the cuffs are simultaneously deflated.  The heart
muscle receives oxygen-rich blood through the coronary arteries when the
heart is at rest; the rest of the body receives oxygenated blood when
the heart contracts. Therefore, the wave of pressure produced by the
inflation of the cuffs when the heart is at rest increases blood flow to
the heart. Deflation of the cuffs when the heart contracts decreases the
workload on the heart as it pumps blood to other parts of the body.EECP® is administered on an outpatient basis, with each session lasting one hour. A complete course of EECP® typically involves 35 hours of treatment over six to seven weeks. Two sessions can be conducted in a day, as long as the patient has a brief rest period between sessions.  People
usually experience little or no discomfort during the procedure and
report few, if any, adverse effects. Some people are fatigued after the
initial treatments, but this tends to subside within a few sessions.
Patients wear "cycling type" pants, provided by the center, during the
sessions to prevent chafing, one of the main adverse effects. Patients
often are asked to keep a diary to record the severity and duration of
any attacks of angina to see if and how their symptoms change over time.
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EECP® of
W. Va.