Southern and Central Pennsylvania seemingly form a hotspot for certain inherited cardiac conditions, including long QT syndrome. In this region, the prevalence is 1 in 45, compared with 1 in 2,000 in the U.S. population. This may in part be due to a population genetics phenomenon called a founder effect. Approximately 1 in 250 individuals has some form of heart muscle disease (cardiomyopathy). With this unique community need in mind, WellSpan Health established the Center for Inherited Cardiovascular Diseases.
Excluding transplant, WellSpan Health offers a full spectrum of cardiac care for people with inherited cardiac conditions:
+ Cardiac electrophysiology
+ Genetics, genome sequencing and genetic counselors
+ Interventional cardiology
+ Multidisciplinary management of other body systems affected by inherited cardiac syndromes
+ Multimodality cardiac imaging
+ Precision drug therapies
+ Research team that includes study coordinators and research fellows
“We offer our patients first-class service equivalent to that found in university medical centers,” says C. Anwar A. Chahal, MD, PhD, MRCP, FACC, FESC, Director of the Center for Inherited Cardiovascular Diseases, Genomic and Precision Medicine, Director for Sarcoid and Inflammatory, and cardiologist at WellSpan Health. “Access to prompt evaluation, diagnostics and treatment is a top priority.”
C. Anwar A. Chahal, MD
WellSpan Health is one of only a handful of centers in the U.S. offering precision medicine for cardiovascular conditions. A recently announced precision medicine partnership with Helix is actively enrolling patients for genetic testing with a focus on early priority recruitment of cardiovascular patients.
Affordable Care for Patients Locally
At WellSpan Health, Dr. Chahal says, an entire genome can be sequenced in less than a month for under $1,000. This is a tremendous benefit for patients who would have otherwise had to travel out of the region for expensive testing and management.
“The expertise is available to know how to handle it, and we as a system are thinking years ahead,” Dr. Chahal says.
Genetic cardiovascular disease may present at any stage of life and, in some cases, with sudden death, something Dr. Chahal and his colleagues are working to prevent through advanced procedures, genetic testing and precision medicine.
Contact Dr. Chahal at cchahal@wellspan.org for more information.