• Skip to main content
  • Skip to main content
Choose which site to search.
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Logo University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
College of Medicine: Department of Internal Medicine
  • UAMS Health
  • Jobs
  • Giving
  • About Us
    • Edward T. H. Yeh, M.D., FACC
    • Administration
    • IMpact Monthly Newsletter
  • Divisions
    • Cardiovascular Medicine
      • Faculty
      • Publications
      • Fellowships
        • Cardiovascular Structural Imaging Fellowship Program
        • Cardiovascular Disease
          • Curriculum
          • Fellows
          • Apply
        • Interventional Cardiology
          • Curriculum
          • Faculty
          • Fellows
          • Apply
        • Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology
          • Fellows
          • Apply
      • Cardiology Research
        • Clinical Research
    • Community Health and Research
    • Endocrinology and Metabolism
      • Faculty
      • Research
        • The Center for Osteoporosis and Metabolic Bone Diseases
        • Diabetes and Obesity
        • Genetic Models Core
      • Staff
      • Fellowship Program
        • Curriculum
          • Clinics
            • Inpatient Consulting Service
            • Osteoporosis Center and Bone and Joint Program
          • Research Programs
        • Faculty
          • Faculty Research and Scholarly Activity
        • Fellows
          • Career Development
          • Fellow Life
        • Apply
        • Most Recent Abstracts and Poster Presentations
    • Gastroenterology and Hepatology
      • Faculty and Staff
      • Research
      • Fellowship
        • Current Fellows
        • Faculty
        • Apply to the Program
        • Wellness
      • Gut Club
        • RSVP for Gut Club
    • General Internal Medicine
      • Faculty and Staff
      • Vision and Values
      • Career Opportunities
    • Hematology and Oncology
      • Faculty and Staff
        • Myeloma Hospitalists
        • Multiple Myeloma Faculty
        • Oncology Faculty
        • Hematology/Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy
      • Fellowship Program
        • Fellows
        • Apply
        • Support Our Program
    • Hospital Medicine
      • Faculty and Staff
      • Career Opportunities
    • Infectious Diseases
      • Faculty
      • Fellowship Program
        • Curriculum
        • Current Fellows
          • Rebekah Thompson, M.D.
        • Fellowship Program Alumni
        • Infectious Diseases Faculty
        • Apply
      • Infectious Diseases Publications
      • Antimicrobial Stewardship Committee
    • Nephrology
      • Nephrology Faculty
      • Research Programs
      • Fellowship Program
        • Curriculum
        • Nephrology Fellows
        • Apply
      • Recent Publications
      • KIDNEYcon
      • Division Staff Contacts
      • Clinical Programs
    • Onco-Cardiology
    • Palliative Medicine
      • Faculty and Staff
        • Faculty Recruitment
      • Clinical Programs
      • Publications
      • Contact Us
      • Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellowship Program
        • Curriculum
        • Faculty
        • Fellows
        • Apply
      • Palliative Care Education
    • Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine
      • Faculty
      • Recent Publications
      • Pulmonary Disease and Critical Care Medicine Fellowship Program
        • Curriculum
        • Conferences
        • Fellows
        • Faculty
        • Testimonials
        • Apply
      • Interventional Pulmonary Fellowship
      • Clinical Information
    • Rheumatology and Immunology
      • Faculty
      • Fellowship
        • Training
        • Fellows
        • Faculty
        • Apply
  • Residencies
    • Internal Medicine Residency
      • Who We Are
        • Program Leadership
        • Program Staff
      • What We Do
        • Work
          • Clinic Week
          • Inpatient Rotations and Electives
          • POCUS Curriculum
          • Educational Conferences
          • Ward Teams
          • Call System
        • Play
        • Resident Research
        • Resident Wellness
      • Where We Go
    • Medicine-Pediatrics Residency
      • Meet the Housestaff
      • Education
      • Training Sites
      • Graduates
      • Guide to Little Rock
      • Applying?
    • Life in Little Rock
    • Application Process
    • GME Info for Resident Trainees
  • Fellowships
  • Grand Rounds
    • 2024 Grand Rounds
    • 2023 Grand Rounds
    • 2022 Grand Rounds
    • 2021 Grand Rounds
    • 2020 Grand Rounds
    • 2019 Grand Rounds
    • 2018 Grand Rounds
    • 2017 Grand Rounds
    • 2016 Grand Rounds
    • 2015 Grand Rounds
  • Faculty Mentoring Program
    • Mentoring Resources
      • For Mentees
      • For Mentors
    • Promotion and Tenure
    • Well-Being
    • Tools
  • Research
    • Annual Research Symposium
      • Abstract Guidelines
      • FAQ
      • Submission Form
      • Recent Posters
      • 2023 Symposium Recap
  • Access and Opportunity
    • CAO Grand Rounds
    • Committee
    • Training Mentorship Program
    • Resident Cultural Initiatives
    • Dr. Ray Miller Award
  • Alumni
    • Alumni Services
    • Alumni Spotlight
    • Top Doctors
    • In Memoriam
    • Alumni Contact Form
  • Endowed Lectureship
  1. University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
  2. College of Medicine
  3. Department of Internal Medicine
  4. News
  5. UAMS Cardiology Team Clears 95%-blocked Artery With New Shockwave Technology

UAMS Cardiology Team Clears 95%-blocked Artery With New Shockwave Technology

By Linda Satter

A new technology that uses sonic waves to blast calcium deposits out of arteries is now available at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS).

The treatment option for advanced heart disease debuted in central Arkansas on June 16 when UAMS cardiologist Subhi Al’Aref, M.D., used it to successfully open and clear a patient’s severely calcified stent.

Stents are tiny tubes that can be inserted into narrowed arteries that have been pried open with balloons, to keep them open and restore blood flow. But as heart disease progresses, bone-like calcium deposits can form, causing rigidity in the artery and increasing the risk of complications – such as perforation of the arterial wall — while trying to insert or open a stent.

A new treatment called intravascular lithotripsy (IVL) allows doctors to shatter the calcium using sonic pressure waves, or shockwave technology, delivered through a catheter mounted on a balloon. The waves pass through soft arterial tissue and create a series of micro-fractures in the calcium, allowing the artery to be expanded at low pressure and a stent to be safely implanted to improve blood flow, with minimal trauma to normal arterial tissue.

The technology is a novel application of lithotripsy, which has been used for decades to safely break up kidney stones.

Before it was available, doctors had to use small drills to crack the hardened calcium and open the artery, but that procedure, known as atherectomy, has a steep learning curve, is difficult to perform and can result in serious complications for the patient. In addition to being safer, shockwave therapy also provides much quicker results.

Al’Aref, an assistant professor in the UAMS College of Medicine Department of Internal Medicine , used the new technology to treat a 70-year-old woman who came to UAMS after repeatedly visiting another hospital’s emergency room with complaints of chest pain that were related to the severe calcification of an old stent that was 95% blocked. The woman had been told there were no treatment options available, but the cardiology team at UAMS decided to try to open the old stent using the newly approved shockwave technology.

“We ballooned the stent successfully the first time, and the second time we used the shockwave technology to expand the stent even more, in order to treat the calcium that was outside the stent and prevented it from being adequately expanded,” Al’Aref said. “We also stented another artery.”

The woman has a follow-up visit scheduled but hasn’t returned to the emergency room.

The technology was granted a breakthrough device designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration prior to its approval in February. The coronary application of the technology has been widely adopted in Europe and since 2018, more than 25,000 patients have undergone a procedure using it, according to Shockwave Medical, a public medical device company headquartered in California whose founders adapted kidney stone lithotripsy for the cardiovascular application.

“With this technology, we should be able to treat heavily calcified vessels more easily and hopefully with fewer complications,” said Gaurav Dhar, M.D., a cardiologist and professor in the Department of Internal Medicine.

Posted by Chris Lesher on July 30, 2021

Filed Under: News

UAMS College of Medicine LogoUAMS College of MedicineUniversity of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Mailing Address: 4301 West Markham Street, Little Rock, AR 72205
Phone: (501) 686-7000
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Disclaimer
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Statement

© 2025 University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences