What are the risks of cardiac catheterization?

Dr. Mehmet Oz answered:

A cardiac catheterization is a procedure done in the hospital that allows a cardiologist to check out the blood flow within your heart from inside the body. It involves inserting a catheter into the heart through an artery in the leg, arm, or neck.

Although the procedure is invasive, risks are rare. They include damage to blood vessels, bleeding, infection, pain at the site where the catheter is inserted, and an allergic reaction to the dye that is sometimes used in the catheter. Still, the possibility of detecting, evaluating, or even treating a heart defect through catheterization far outweighs the risks.

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A cardiac catheterization is a procedure done in the hospital that allows a cardiologist to check out the blood flow within your heart from inside the body. It involves inserting a catheter into the heart through an artery in the leg, arm, or neck.... More

Johns Hopkins Medicine answered:

Cardiac catheterization is performed in patients with heart attack symptoms, such as chest pain and shortness of breath, for predicting the need for cardiac bypass surgery or angioplasty to restore their blood flow. Risks from the procedure are considered very low (less than 1 percent), and include bleeding from insertion of the catheter, perforation of the heart wall during insertion of the catheter, stroke caused by dislodged arterial debris traveling to the brain and postoperative infection.

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Dr. William D. Knopf of Piedmont Heart Institute answered:

Cardiac catheterization is a common medical procedure that rarely causes serious problems. However, complications can include:

Bleeding, infection, and pain where the catheter was inserted
Damage to blood vessels. Rarely, the catheter may scrape or poke a hole in a blood vessel as it's threaded to the heart
An allergic reaction to the dye used

Other, less common complications of the procedure include:

Arrhythmias (irregular heartbeats). These often go away on their own, but may need treatment if they persist.
Damage to the kidneys caused by the dye used
Blood clots that can trigger stroke, heart attack, or other serious problems
Low blood pressure
A buildup of blood or fluid in the sac that surrounds the heart. This fluid can prevent the heart from beating properly.

As with any procedure involving the heart, complications can sometimes be fatal. However, this is rare with cardiac catheterization.

The risk of complications with cardiac catheterization is higher if you have diabetes or kidney disease or if you're aged 75 or older. The risk of complications also is greater in women and in people having cardiac catheterization on an emergency basis.

This answer from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute has been reviewed and/or edited by Dr. William D. Knopf.

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Dr. Charles I. Wilmer of Piedmont Heart Institute answered:

The risks of cardiac catheterization procedures include having a heart attack, a stroke, a severe arrhythmia, blood clots that may travel to the leg or brain, infection, bleeding especially where the catheter goes into the body or allergies such as an allergic response to the contrast dye. This is usually rare, occurring in 1 out of 500 patients. The risk goes up the sicker the patient is.

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The risks of cardiac catheterization procedures include having a heart attack, a stroke, a severe arrhythmia, blood clots that may travel to the leg or brain, infection, bleeding especially where the catheter goes into the body or allergies such... More

Brigham and Women's Hospital answered:

Possible risks associated with cardiac catheterization, a procedure performed to further diagnose coronary artery disease, valvular heart disease, congestive heart failure, and/or certain congenital (present at birth) heart conditions, include, but are not limited to, the following:

bleeding at the catheter insertion site (usually the groin, but the arm may be used in certain circumstances)
blood clot or damage to the blood vessel at the insertion site
infection at the catheter insertion site
problems with heart rhythm (usually temporary)
ischemia (decreased blood flow to the heart tissue), chest pain, or angina
stroke (rare)

You may want to ask your physician about the amount of radiation used during the procedure and the risks related to your particular situation. It is a good idea to keep a record of your past history of radiation exposure, such as previous scans and other types of x-rays, so that you can inform your physician. Risks associated with radiation exposure may be related to the cumulative number of x-ray examinations and/or treatments over a long period of time.

If you are pregnant or suspect that you may be pregnant, you should notify your physician due to risk of injury to the fetus from a cardiac catheterization. Radiation exposure during pregnancy may lead to birth defects. If you are lactating, or breastfeeding, you should notify your physician.

There is a risk for allergic reaction to the cath dye. Patients who are allergic to or sensitive to medications, contrast dye, iodine, or latex should notify their physician. Also, patients with kidney failure or other kidney problems should notify their physician.

For some patients, having to lie still on the cardiac catheterization table for the length of the procedure may cause some discomfort or pain.

There may be other risks depending upon your specific medical condition. Be sure to discuss any concerns with your physician prior to the procedure.

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Healthwise answered:

Complications related to the catheter include:

Pain, swelling and tenderness at the catheter insertion site.
Irritation of the vein by the catheter (superficial thrombophlebitis). This can usually be treated with warm compresses.
Bleeding at the catheter site.
A bruise where the catheter was inserted. This usually goes away in a few days.
Trouble urinating after the procedure.

Serious complications are rare, but they can be life-threatening. Serious complications are more likely to occur in people who are critically ill or elderly. These complications may include:

Sudden closure of the coronary artery.
Small tear in the inner lining of the artery.
Allergic reaction to the contrast material, with hives and itching and, rarely, shortness of breath, fever and shock. These allergic reactions can usually be controlled with medicines.
Kidney damage. In rare cases, the contrast material can damage the kidneys, possibly causing kidney failure. People with diabetes and kidney disease are at greatest risk for kidney damage.
Heart attack or stroke.
Need for more procedures or surgery for complications.

Radiation risk. There is always a slight risk of damage to cells or tissues from being exposed to any radiation, including the low levels of X-ray used for this test. But the risk of damage from the X-rays is usually very low compared with the potential benefits of the test.