Cardiorenal Care

If you have advanced kidney disease and need a heart procedure or transplant clearance, you may feel like there’s no one who can help. You may have been turned down for a heart procedure simply because your kidney disease places you in a high-risk category. Or a renal program may have determined that you can’t be cleared for a kidney transplant.

But at Columbia, we’re changing the way people think about treating patients with heart conditions and kidney disease. As part of our Cardiorenal Care Program, we regularly perform interventions no one else will—safely and with less risk to your kidneys.

To make an appointment, please call 212-305-7060 or complete our online appointment request form.

Treating Cardiovascular Disease Without Damaging the Kidneys

Many patients with kidney disease have accompanying cardiovascular disease, like coronary artery disease or atrial fibrillation. For proper diagnosis and treatment of these heart conditions, many tests and procedures require a special dye that shows the contrast needed for clear imaging. Because the typical amount of dye used is damaging to the kidneys, patients with renal disease are often deemed too high-risk. This is especially true for patients who are not currently on dialysis.

Our team of specialists has developed and refined an innovative approach to interventional cardiac procedures: By greatly reducing the amount of dye used, our cardiologists can safely and effectively perform these procedures while reducing the risk of kidney damage. These “low-contrast” interventions and imaging can help patients who had previously been unable to safely get the care they need.

Our Services

• Low-contrast interventions - Using this kidney-friendly method, we can safely treat a number of heart and vascular conditions in patients with renal disease, including:
  • Aortic stenosis
  • Atrial fibrillation
  • Coronary artery disease
  • Complex higher-risk (and indicated) patients (CHIP)
  • Heart failure
  • Lower extremity peripheral artery disease
• Cardiovascular assessments for kidney transplant clearances - Because cardiovascular complications often lead to poor outcomes for kidney transplant patients, preoperative cardiac risk assessments are an important part of the selection process for transplant recipients. As part of our Cardiorenal Care Program, we can safely assess heart function for kidney transplant clearances. Our experts can also work with patients to effectively manage their heart disease and help get them healthy enough for clearance. 

What Specialists Will Be Part of my Care?

Our Team

Megha Prasad, MD, MS
Director, Cardiorenal Care Program

Torsten Vahl, MD
Structural Heart and Valve Care

Lloyd Ratner, MD
Director, Renal and Pancreatic Transplantation

David Cohen, MD
Nephrology

Highlights

Trust the Experts at Columbia

Here at Columbia, you’ll be working with some of the leading cardiologists in the nation. And if you choose to work with the outstanding renal program here for your transplant, we’ll work closely with your team to help manage your heart health while you prepare—and while you recover.

The Most Complex Cases

Our expertise and experience with low-contrast techniques allow us to provide care for patients seeking treatment or transplant clearances who have been turned away by other programs. And for transplant recipients, we can work with them in our clinic to manage their heart health long-term—and always using techniques that greatly reduce the risk to their kidneys.

A Multispecialty Approach to Care

Our Cardiorenal Care Program combines expertise from across Columbia, with experts in structural heart valve care, heart failure, cardiovascular imaging, interventional cardiology, and general cardiology. We work closely with world-class nephrologists, internal medicine specialists, and transplant surgeons to provide the very best in comprehensive care.

Columbia Virtual Visits

For some appointments, it may not be necessary to come into the office at all. We offer Virtual Visit telehealth appointments, so you can see a member of our team from the comfort of your own home. When you contact us to make an appointment, we will work with you to determine if a Virtual Visit is right for you.

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