Buena Park Heart Center
01
What is Enhanced External Counterpulsation?
EECP (Enhanced External Counterpulsation) is a non-invasive treatment for individuals with angina and heart failure. It uses compression cuffs around the legs to increase blood flow to the heart, reducing symptoms and improving the quality of life.
EECP therapy is an FDA-approved treatment that uses a special device to deliver compressed air to the legs during a person's heartbeat. The compression cuffs are placed on the legs and are inflated and deflated in a specific pattern that corresponds to the heartbeat. This increases the flow of blood to the heart and improves the oxygenation of the heart muscle.
EECP therapy is a safe, non-invasive, and effective treatment option for individuals with angina and heart failure. It is an alternative to invasive procedures such as angioplasty and bypass surgery. It is also used as an adjunctive treatment to medication and lifestyle changes.
EECP therapy has been shown to improve the quality of life and reduce symptoms such as chest pain, shortness of breath, and fatigue for up to three years after the therapy. It has also been shown to improve cardiovascular function and reduce the need for hospitalization.
02
How does EECP work?
EECP therapy works by increasing the blood and oxygen supply to the heart muscle and decreasing the amount of work the heart must do to pump blood to the rest of the body. While the heart is at rest, treatment cuffs inflate from the calves to the thighs to the buttocks, which increases the blood supply to the arteries feeding the heart muscle. Just before the next heartbeat, all the cuffs simultaneously deflate, decreasing the heart’s workload.
During EECP the blood flowing to the patient's heart will naturally bypass arteries with significant plaque, and instead enter healthy, non-diseased blood vessels, circumnavigating blockages. In time, these new pathways are reinforced and become lasting routes for blood to reach the heart beyond the blockages. This is why EECP is often referred to as a “natural bypass.”
03
What are the indications for EECP?
EECP candidates include patients with angina pectoris responding inadequately to anti-ischemic agents and coronary revascularization, who are inoperable or at high risk for operative complications or postoperative failure, who are poor candidates for PCI or CABG, or continue to have disabling angina despite revascularization.
04
How can I learn more about EECP?
We invite you to visit our EECP Heart Therapy website, where the treatment is discussed in great detail.
Feel visit us on YouTube as well, where you will find virtual tours of Buena Park Heart Center, lectures providing comprehensive descriptions of EECP's mechanisms of action, patient testimonials and more.
Enhanced External Counterpulsation
Healthy Blood Flow,
Healthy Heart
