The heart muscle is what keeps life-sustaining blood pumping throughout our bodies, throughout our limbs and organs. This seemingly endless pumping begins in the womb and continues throughout our lifetimes until we take our last breath. That is precisely why it is so important that we take great care of our hearts through proper exercise and diet. If you are suffering with poor circulation or painful twinges in your chest, it may be wise to consult with your physician to pinpoint the cause so you can take care of your heart. If found that your chest pain can be attributed to what is called an angina attack, or insufficient oxygen in your blood being received by your heart, then External CounterPulsation, or ECP therapy, may be a treatment for you to consider.
ECP is a non-invasive procedure where cuffs, placed on your calves, both inflate and deflate to help control the flow of blood throughout your body and to your heart. This is carefully timed while your heart is resting to give your heart a small break and increase oxygenation.
Here are a few of the numerous ways in which ECP treatment can help you continue to take care of your heart’s health.
1) ECP may improve circulation throughout your body. By increasing your blood’s oxygen, ECP enables your heart to receive small, oxygen filled energy bursts that helps your heart to pump more efficiently, thus improving circulation.
2) ECP is shown to reduce the amount of heart or blood pressure medications required. By improving the flow of oxygenated blood, angina attacks are likely to reduce in number or cease all together. This means that your medical provider may feel it is best to take you off your medications or reduce your dosage significantly.
3) Heart pain may cause individuals to reduce their life’s daily or extracurricular activities as a means of angina attack prevention. As a result, the quality of life decreases. With ECP, the amount of attacks is fewer, thus giving individuals more freedom in being able to get their heart rate within the optimal target rate for beats per minute that is often associated with healthy levels of exercise. This may lead to an increase in a quality of life for those treated with ECP.
If you have been suffering with poor circulation, low oxygenation, or painful angina attacks, you may feel inclined to research potential treatment options to help you properly care for your heart. The first and most important step in determining if you are a candidate for ECP therapy as a treatment option is to talk to a medical provider. Contact us today at the office of Dr. James DeStephens and schedule your consultation with our team in Gainesville, Florida! If you are found to be a good fit for ECP therapy, you may be able to get your life back to normal and feel more like yourself again.
