text: what are the risks of a cardiac catheterization procedure?   i am an 18 year old and i had a heart attack last year. i had a cardiac catheterization. the serious complications really don't happen that often because it is done as a daily procedure so the doctors know what they are doing because they specialize in that and do it day in and day out. but you can die from a heart attack while they are in there if the puncture something. you are awake during the procedure and you can tell the doctor what you are felling. you will take a valume or a kind of drug like that where you get goofy. they numb the area where they put in the catheter and you don't feel it inside of you. i felt like the side where they were doing the procedure my leg was getting tingly like it was falling asleep. if you go to the link below it is a fantastic link it will tell you everything that you need to know about the procedure. recovery is quick it is about six to eight hour after that you can walk, with a limp and some pain but you can. i took morphine after for the pain because of was getting pretty painful but just ask the doctor you can get some. don't worry about it. it takes about an hour but it feels like 15 minutes because of the drugs. e-mail me if you have any other questions? a_t_derose@sbcglobal.net oh and can i ask what this is for?