Lipid Clinic - Cholesterol is the underlying culprit in coronary heart disease. This essential element in our body gets deposited in the wrong places under certain circumstances. Controlling its level in the body is therefore essential. The liver is responsible for producing more than 85% of the cholesterol in the blood. Diet takes care of the rest. By monitoring closely the levels of the good (HDL) and the bad (LDL) cholesterol, we can then influence the levels by dieting and appropriate use of cholesterol-lowering medications. The target levels of cholesterol vary depending on circumstances. The Terre Haute Heart Center has the expertise to manage this ubiquitous and threatening condition.

Coagulation Clinic - A number of heart patients have to be maintained on blood thinners, such as Coumadin, for various reasons including the presence of artificial heart valves or rhythm abnormalities that predispose them to stroke from clots that are thrown from the chambers of the heart. Use of these blood thinners also carries the inherent risk of bleeding. It is therefore essential to closely monitor the level of blood thinning. The Heart Center's Coagulation Clinic monitors the Prothrombin Time (PT and INR) and adjusts the dose of the medication to keep it within the recommended range.

Congestive Heart Failure Clinic - Despite all the above capabilities, there sometimes comes a point when the heart is more irreversibly damaged and is left weakened by scarring, heart attack, valvular disease, viral infection or by other less frequent conditions. In the more severe situation, there may be an increasing need for medications and recurrent hospitalizations to keep the patient going. To stop this downward spiral, the Heart Center has developed a program of periodic infusion of intravenous medication to strengthen the heart muscle--a "tune up" if you will. This is done through a closely monitored IV infusion of inotropic agents (heart muscle strengthening medicines) over a period of 4-6 hours every 1-4 weeks depending on the need of the individual patient. This is done in addition to the dietary and exercise-counseling, and fine-tuning of the various oral medications that most patients need. This has been proven to improve the exercise capacity and physical well-being of the afflicted individuals, and at the same time reduce their need for hospitalizations.

One Day Heart Evaluation Program - Realizing the dilemma of the working people who cannot afford to take too much time off even to attend to their medical needs, the Terre Haute Heart Center developed the One Day Heart Evaluation Program. Any person who has concern about potentially having a heart condition can call the Heart Center to find out through telephone interview if he might benefit from the program. Dr. Andres screens all interviews and determines if such individual would benefit. That person is then scheduled to come in early one morning to have a stress nuclear imaging study, an echocardiogram, and blood tests looking at the cholesterol profile and blood sugar test to screen for diabetes. Dr. Andres sits down with the individual after all the tests are done to complete the examination and summarize the findings. The individual goes home knowing everything there is to know at the end of the day.