Loss of life is one of the rarer cardiac catheterization complications. Fortunately, the risk of this happening has continued to decrease over the past 25 years as the procedure has become safer.

 

However, several conditions can increase the risk of such a serious complication. These conditions include:

 

 

The risk of death also increases when procedures such as balloon angioplasty or atherectomy are used to fix problems in the coronary arteries, especially in high-risk patients. Every effort will be made to minimize this risk prior to performing the heart catheterization.