The Department of Cardiology at Hôtel-Dieu de France
Years of Expertise Alongside Modern Technologies
In 1922, General Gouraud laid the foundation stone of Hôtel-Dieu de France hospital and so the construction began. It was his successor, General Weygand, who inaugurated in 1923 the hospital that is considered today a reference medical center renowned for its pioneering approach and its high-end healthcare services that place it at the forefront of this field.
Cardiology made its debut at Hôtel-Dieu de France hospital with Prof. Elie Saliby who was known for carrying his own ECG machine from one hospital to another. Then came Prof. Edmond Fakhri, who graduated in France and was appointed as Head of the Department of Cardiology until 1978, when he emigrated from Lebanon for security reasons. He was followed by Prof. Elie Checrallah until his retirement in 2001, then by Prof. Roland Kassab until 2013, and finally, by Prof. Rabih Azar who is still on duty as the current Head of the Department at Hôtel-Dieu.
The Department of Cardiology at Hôtel-Dieu has progressively acquired cutting-edge technologies and coupled it with excellent human capital trained at the most prestigious universities and hospitals in Europe and the United States.
Today, the Department of Cardiology at Hôtel-Dieu is able to perform the following medical explorations and procedures:
Invasive hemodynamic tests: coronary angiograms, coronary angioplasties with insertion of different types of stents, FFR and IVUS, percutaneous treatment of coronary chronic total occlusion (CTO).
Percutaneous treatment of heart valve diseases: transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) for severe aortic stenosis and MitraClip for severe mitral regurgitation.
Percutaneous left atrial appendage occlusion using Watchman or Amulet device.
Ablative techniques in heart rhythmology: supraventricular tachycardia (in particular atrial fibrillation) or ventricular tachycardia, atrioventricular node and accessory bundles.
Electrophysiological explorations in rhytmology with cardiac cartography, implantation of different types of Pacemakers, single, dual or triple chamber, with or without implantable defibrillator.
All types of echocardiography: transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE), transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE), stress echocardiography (through exercise or Dobutamine), 3D echocardiography, echocardiogram with contrast, Tissue Doppler imaging, Strain.
Other non-invasive explorations: stress test, 24-hour or 48-hour Holter monitoring the heart’s rhythm or blood pressure, ventricular late potentials (signal average ECG).
Moreover, the Department has established a perfectly equipped coronary care unit with state-of-the-art technologies providing high-quality treatments to severe cases admitted. The Department of Cardiology at Hôtel-Dieu also comprises a highly active research unit that plays a very effective role. It has published many papers in high-level international journals focusing on various fields such as new therapies, new paraclinical tests and cutting-edge technologies.
In addition, the Department organizes every year one of the most important and largest conferences attended by specialists from Lebanon and all over the world, focusing on innovations in cardiology.
The cardiologists of HDF also participate in the most prestigious medical conferences organized around the world, in which they frequently deliver oral presentations, thus sharing their latest research work and achievements with the world.
The progress the Department of Cardiology has made over the years makes it today a leading cardiovascular institution in terms of welcoming patients, offering them the best cardiovascular treatments and providing continuous medical education to health professionals and the community.
