BAHAWALPUR: The Bahawalpur Cardiac Centre (BCC) at the Bahawal Victoria Hospital (BVH) has set a `national record’ in complex percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in a day.
Also known as coronary angioplasty with stenting, it is a minimally invasive, non-surgical procedure used to open blocked or narrowed coronary (heart) arteries.According to the head of the BCC Prof Dr Shahadat Hussain Chaudhury,
the Pervaiz Elahi Institute of Cardiology (PIC), Bahawalpur, held a specialised workshop on rotational atherectomy, commonly known as Rotablation, during elective PCI.
The event highlighted the institute’s growing capacity to manage highly complex coronary artery disease using advanced interventional techniques.
In a press release, Prof Dr Shahadat Hussain Chaudhury elaborated that Rotablation was used when coronary arteries contain severe, hard calcium deposits that could not be adequately treated with conventional balloons.
A diamond-coated rotating burr passed through the narrowed segment at high speed, modifying the calcified plaque and preparing the artery for balloon dilatation and stent placement. In carefully selected patients, the technique could improve stent expansion and procedural success.
He said 10 Rotablation procedures were performed during the workshop on deserving cases.
The Pervaiz Elahi Institute of Cardiology (PIC) officials described this as a Pakistan record for the number of such procedures completed at one centre in a single day.
Published in Dawn, October 11th, 2026
