 Aalst is a
small town located in Flanders, the Flemish part of Belgium , halfway between
Gent and Brussels. The city is known for its oignons, the lively carnival
and... the Cardiovascular Center. The Cardiology
Division was founded over 28 years ago by Erik Andries and Paul Nellens, at the
Onze-Lieve-Vrouw Ziekenhuis, a medium-size private general hospital.
Cardiac
surgery soon followed under the leadership of Hugo Vanermen. Presentely, 16
cardiologists and 4 surgeons have a full-time affiliation with the
Cardiovascular Center Aalst. Medical activities have recently expanded to
include two additional sites in the nearby towns of Asse and Ninove.
The team
includes up to 250 nurses, technicians, kinesitherapists, secretaries. The
Division has a teaching program for trainees in internal medicine and general
cardiology. Fellows are involved in specialized or post-doctoral programs for
invasive electrophysiology and interventional cardiology. Clinical services
include a heart transplant program, the heart failure clinic, the cardiac
readaptation center as well as conventional non-invasive and invasive diagnostic
and therapeutic tools. Facilities include the acute cardiac care unit, three
hospitalization wards, a one-day care facility, four catheterization
laboratories.
Our surgical
colleagues have pioneered innovative forms of less invasive surgery, including
mitral valve repair via Heart Port Access, robotics, endovascular procedures for
carotid and aortic disease.
Ongoing
research in our Cardiovascular Center focuses on new diagnostic and treatment
modalities for heart failure and hypertrophy, the role of genetic markers in
ventricular arrhythmias, in particular the Brugada syndrome, the physiological
evaluation of coronary stenoses, the prevention and treatment of in-stent
restenosis and cell therapy in patients with acute myocardial infarction and
chronic ischemic heart failure.
It is the
ambition of our group to provide high-quality patient care, at an academic level
and at the same time, to maintain a direct, "private" relationship between the
patient and his physician.
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Clinical
Cardiology:
E.
Andries
M. Goethals
P. Nellens
H. De Raedt
M. Vanderheyden
E.
Wyffels
J. Leeman
S. Verstreken
P. Peytchev
Acute Cardiac Care:
H. De Raedt
Cardiac
Readaption:
E. Andries
P. Nellens
S. Verstreken
Heart Failure and
Cardiac Transplantation:
M. Goethals
J. Bartunek
M.
Vanderheyden
S. Verstreken
Non-invasive Cardiac
Imaging:
B. De Bruyne
J. Bartunek
W. Wijns
Clinical and
Invasive Electrophysiology:
P. Geelen
P. Peytchev
Pacing and
Anti-arrhythmia Devices:
M. Goethals
P. Geelen
M.
Vanderheyden
Molecular
Cardiology:
J. Bartunek
E. Barbato
Cardiac
Catheterization and Coronary Interventions:
G. Heyndrickx
P. Nellens
W. Paulus
M. Goethals
B. De Bruyne
W. Wijns
J. Bartunek
M. Vanderheyden
E. Wyffels
E. Barbato
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