Understanding the Cath Lab: Devices, Team Roles, and Common Procedures

If you're breaking into cardiovascular device sales, you need more than just product knowledge—you need to understand the environment you’re selling into. The cardiac catheterization lab, or cath lab, is where diagnostic and interventional procedures take place for patients with heart disease and vascular conditions.

In this post, we’ll break down:

• What happens in the cath lab

• Who’s in the room (and who really drives decisions)

• The most common procedures and devices you’ll encounter

🏥 What Is the Cath Lab?

The cath lab is a specialized procedure room equipped with advanced imaging systems that allow physicians to visualize arteries, valves, and cardiac structures in real time using fluoroscopy and contrast dye.

Cath labs are used for:

• Diagnostic angiograms (to identify blockages or anomalies)

• Percutaneous interventions (like stenting or valve implantation)

• Electrophysiology procedures (like ablations or pacemaker insertions in some hybrid labs)

👉 This post is a great pre-read for our upcoming article: Sheath Sizes, Guide Compatibility, and Fluoro 101: What Every New Rep Should Know

👩‍⚕️ Who’s in the Cath Lab? Key Team Roles Explained

Success in device sales hinges on knowing who’s who in the lab. Here are the key players:

• Interventional Cardiologist: Leads the procedure. Your main clinical decision-maker.

• Scrub Tech (RT or RCIS): Stands at the table, hands tools, manages wires and devices.

• Circulating Nurse: Handles documentation, medications, and room setup.

• Monitoring Nurse/Tech: Tracks vitals and pressures; manages hemodynamic system.

• Fellows or Residents: May participate in teaching hospitals—often key advocates.

• Device Rep(s): If you're in the room, you're there to support and troubleshoot—not sell.

💡 Pro tip: Your real customer may not be the one holding the scalpel—it’s often the scrub tech or coordinator who determines what gets pulled off the shelf.

🛠️ Common Procedures You’ll See in the Cath Lab

Whether you're supporting diagnostic tools or interventional devices, these are the foundational procedures every rep should understand:

1. Diagnostic Coronary Angiogram

• Identifies blockages in coronary arteries

• Typically first step in assessing chest pain or CAD

• Uses: diagnostic catheters, pressure wires, FFR/iFR, OCT

2. Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI)

• Also known as angioplasty with stenting

• Devices: balloons, drug-eluting stents, guidewires, microcatheters

3. Peripheral Interventions

• Targets arteries in the legs, kidneys, or other non-coronary vessels

• Often performed in the same lab by the same team

4. Structural Heart Procedures (in hybrid labs or advanced cath labs)

• Includes TAVR, MitraClip, PFO closures

• High complexity and multiple vendor reps involved

🎯 What Reps Need to Know Before Stepping Foot in the Lab

• Understand table-side etiquette: Don’t speak unless spoken to, and never touch the sterile field.

• Be prepared to answer device prep questions quickly and clearly.

• Learn how your product fits into the workflow—before, during, and after the procedure.

• Know the fluoro time, contrast usage, and device compatibility stats that matter to your users.

💡 Bonus tip: Use your downtime to observe, learn the preferences of each physician, and build trust with the staff—not just the cardiologist.

Final Takeaway: You Don’t Just Sell to the Lab—You Sell in It

The best reps don’t just drop off brochures—they become trusted resources. If you understand the dynamics of the cath lab, speak the language of the team, and know the common procedures cold, you’ll stand out from day one.

Next Up:

• Sheath Sizes, Guide Compatibility, and Fluoro 101: What Every New Rep Should Know

• Understanding the TAVR Procedure: A Rep’s Perspective

• Enroll in Device 201 or our Coronary Devices Course to dive deeper into procedural workflows, device prep, and case support best practices.