A catheterization laboratory, commonly referred to as a cath lab, is an examination room in a hospital or clinic with diagnostic imaging equipment used to visualize the arteries and chambers of the heart and treat any stenosis or blockages. The cath lab is equipped with state-of-the-art imaging technology used to view the arteries and check how well blood is flowing to and from the heart. The procedure itself involves threading a long, thin tube, called a catheter, through an artery or vein in the leg or arm and into the heart. Once the catheter is in place, it can be used to perform a number of procedures including angioplasty, PCI (percutaneous coronary intervention) angiography, transcatheter aortic valve replacement, balloon septostomy, and an electrophysiology study or catheter ablation. Most catheterization laboratories are "single plane" facilities, those that have a single X-ray generator source and an X-ray image intensifier for fluoroscopic imaging. Older cath labs used cine film to record the information obtained, but since 2000, most new facilities are digital. The latest digital cath labs are biplane (have two X-ray sources) and use flat panel detectors. The staff in the cath lab usually includes a medical practitioner (normally either a consultant cardiologist or radiologist), cardiac physiologist, radiographer, and nurse. The cardiac catheterization laboratory at Mayo Clinic has been active for more than 50 years and offers treatment for several conditions, such as aortic valve disease, coronary artery disease, congenital heart disease, heart failure, peripheral artery disease, and mitral valve regurgitation.