HOUSTON (September 25, 2008) — Ever wish you could email your health questions to a highly qualified cardiac physician and actually get a response? Now you can. In keeping with its mission to educate and share knowledge about the heart and blood vessels with the public, the Texas Heart Institute (THI) at St. Luke’s has launched a new online service, Ask a Texas Heart Institute Doctor. A feature of THI’s Heart Information Center, this service is available at www.texasheart.org/heartdoctor.

Anyone with Internet access can go to the website and ask a question about preventing, diagnosing or treating cardiovascular disease. Participants are encouraged to ask questions whose answers will benefit the public in general, rather than questions about the individual’s specific health condition. Answers to appropriate questions will be posted on the website and links to more information on the THI website will be provided.

The idea for this new service is the concept of Dr. Mehdi Razavi, a cardiologist who specializes in cardiac electrophysiology.

“The Internet is a powerful communication tool and we look forward to empowering the public with accurate, current information in an accessible way. Most people already use the Internet to search for health related information. There’s no reason why they shouldn’t get precise information from an expert source,” said Dr. Razavi.