When it comes to your heart, you should know that many of the nation’s latest cardiovascular procedures got their start right here in Tupelo.

North Mississippi Medical Center is home to one of the largest cardiovascular research centers in the country, which means our patients get access to innovative devices and medications years before they would ordinarily become available.

The First

NMMC continues to pioneer many advances in heart and vascular care. For example, we are:

• One of the first in the nation to perform renal denervation, a new procedure that offers hope for people when lifestyle changes and medications alone fail to adequately their control blood pressure.
• The first hospital in Mississippi to perform intravascular lithotripsy, a procedure that uses sonic pressure waves to address hard, calcified coronary plaque that restricts blood flow.
• The first hospital in Mississippi to use new technology in peripheral atherectomy that removes plaque from peripheral arteries above the knee.
• The first hospital in Mississippi and Alabama to implant a transcatheter aortic heart valve with technology that will potentially allow the valve to last longer than anything available in the past.
• The first hospital in Mississippi to use a new vacuum-assisted device to treat tricuspid endocarditis (infection in the heart) without having to open the chest. This procedure can also be used to treat pulmonary embolism.
• The first hospital in Mississippi to perform transcatheter tricuspid valve replacement surgery, accessing the heart through a small incision in the patient’s leg.
• The first hospital in Mississippi to implant a new temporary heart pump to allow a patient’s heart to rest and recover from a major heart attack while supplying much needed blood and oxygen to other vital organs.
• The first hospital in Mississippi to perform transcarotid artery revascularization to improve blood flow and prevent stroke in patients who are considered too risky for traditional carotid artery surgery.

The Only

NMMC offers access to nationally recognized physicians whenever you need them, day or night. Our board-certified cardiologists, cardiac electrophysiologists, and cardiothoracic and vascular surgeons are available 24/7. We are:

• The only hospital in north Mississippi with board-certified vascular surgeons.
• The region’s only lipid program for patients with difficult-to-manage dyslipidemia (a disorder of lipoprotein metabolism).
• This area’s only device program, in which we follow more than 1,000 patients with pacemakers and/or implantable defibrillators.
• The area’s only treatment program for pulmonary embolus, a common cause of sudden death.
• The only local treatment center for hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy, which can lead to progressive heart failure and sudden death.
• The region’s only percutaneous ASD/PFO closure center, correcting defects that often lead to stroke or other arterial clots. Since 2007, we have successfully closed more than 1,000 “holes in the heart.”
• The only hospital in north Mississippi to offer percutaneous mitral valve repair through a leg vein to reach the heart. Unlike surgery, this procedure does not require opening the chest and temporarily stopping the heart.
• The only hospital where both our cardiothoracic surgeons and cardiac electrophysiologists are trained in hybrid Convergent therapy for persistent atrial fibrillation using minimally invasive and open procedures.

The Most

More patients and procedures add up to fewer complications and better outcomes. As the most experienced advanced program in the region, we have:

• Implanted more than 1,000 left atrial appendage closure devices to prevent stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation. These devices are an excellent alternative for patients in whom long-term use of blood-thinning medication is problematic. Doctors here also performed the first hepatic procedure in Mississippi, and only fourth in the nation, through a vein in the liver.
• Performed more than 900 transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) procedures. In 2012, we were the first hospital in Mississippi and the seventh nationwide to offer TAVR, an alternative for high-risk patients for whom heart surgery was not an option. Later that year,
• NMMC became the first hospital in Mississippi to perform a transapical transcatheter aortic valve replacement, in which the valve is inserted between the ribs and the heart’s apex.
• Performed the most descending aneurysm repair procedures – both minimally invasive and open surgery.

Many of the latest heart and vascular advances were pioneered and perfected right here in Tupelo. So, when it comes to expert heart care, you don’t have to travel far. Just down the road.