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Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD

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Specializes in: Cardiac Electrophysiology (Heart Rhythm) and Adult Cardiology

Professional interests include: peripheral vascular disease, enlarged heart (cardiomegaly), bicuspid aortic valve disease, and more.

141 Lynch Creek Way Suite C
Petaluma, CA 94954

(707) 790-8000

Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD is a cardiac electrophysiologist in Petaluma, CA specializing in cardiac electrophysiology (heart rhythm) and adult cardiology. Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD is affiliated with Providence, Providence Medical Foundation and Providence Medical Group Sonoma.

Office Locations

Providence

141 Lynch Creek Way Suite C
Petaluma, CA 94954

(707) 790-8000

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Some issues Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD can help you with:

Angioplasty

Angioplasty is a common, minimally invasive procedure performed to restore blood flow in arteries and veins that have become narrowed or blocked. Age or illness can cause plaque to build up at certain spots within the veins and arteries, and if enough collects, it can restrict the flow of blood. Angioplasty uses a tiny balloon at the end of a small, flexible tube to inflate within the narrowed section and open it up again.

Angioplasty may be performed in several different areas of the body and for a variety of reasons, most often:

Peripheral arterial disease, which reduces blood flow in the arms or legs
Atherosclerosis, or general hardening of the arteries
Carotid artery stenosis, or narrowing of the arteries in the neck that supply the brain
Coronary artery disease, or narrowing of the arteries near the heart
Renal vascular hypertension, or narrowing of the arteries in the kidney, leading to increased blood pressure

During angioplasty, a patient is given a sedative while lying on a table under an x-ray machine. A catheter (a thin, flexible, and hollow tube) is inserted into the patient's skin in the arm or groin and guided into the blocked artery. Dye is injected via the catheter, and x-rays are used to position the tip of the catheter exactly at the blockage. The tiny balloon is guided through the catheter and inflated with saline. It pushes the plaque out of the way, squishing it against the walls of the artery. The balloon may be inflated and deflated several times to let blood pass by. A stent, a tiny tube of metal mesh like a spring, may be inserted to help keep the artery open. Then the x-ray is used again to check that blood is flowing properly, the catheter is removed, and the tiny incision is bandaged.

There are no nerves within veins and arteries, so an angioplasty is generally not painful. However, there may be some discomfort at the site of the incision and when the balloon is inflated. Overall, angioplasty is a very effective and low-risk procedure, useful for helping patients avoid more difficult bypass surgery.

Heart Attack

A heart attack is a serious medical event that happens when the blood supplying oxygen to the heart is cut off, usually because of a blockage in an artery. This results in damage or death of part of the heart muscle. The heart can heal, but like any part of the body that was injured it leaves a scar. This scar tissue does not contract effectively, so the ability of the heart to pump is lowered after a heart attack.

A heart attack, sometimes called a myocardial infarction, can happen without warning. However there are certain factors that raise the risk of heart attack. Some of these are:

Age
Gender (most heart attack sufferers are male)
A family history of heart attacks
Smoking
Obesity
High cholesterol
High blood pressure
Diabetes
Unhealthy lifestyle choices (lack of exercise, poor diet, too much alcohol or stress)

Heart attacks typically feel like pain or pressure in the chest that can radiate out to the back, arm, or jaw. Some other symptoms can include fatigue or weakness, shortness of breath, sweating, and nausea.

Treatment aims to increase blood flow to the heart muscle by opening up blocked blood vessels. Medications are sometimes used to dissolve clots in the arteries. Aspirin and other medications such as Plavix can thin the blood and make clots less likely to form. Dilators can widen blood vessels to make room for more blood to flow. Doctors can also use a procedure called catheterization to look at the blood vessels around the heart directly, place stents, or widen vessels using angioplasty. In extreme cases bypass surgery can be used to help blood flow better. After recovery, it is important to lead a healthy lifestyle and take any prescribed medications in order to protect the heart.

Heart Problems

The heart is one of the most important organs in the body. This smooth muscle expands and contracts rhythmically an entire lifetime, pumping blood to the lungs and then to every other cell in the body. When heart problems occur, it becomes difficult for the body to get the nutrients and oxygen it needs via the blood. So while there are a variety of illnesses and disorders that affect the heart, most of them cause weakness, exhaustion and shortness of breath. The most common heart conditions include heart disease, angina, arrhythmia, and valve disorders.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States for both men and women. This includes coronary artery disease, heart attacks, congestive heart failure, and congenital heart disease. Some conditions, such as genetics, cannot be controlled. But there are many other things one can do to lower their risk for heart disease. Controlling high blood pressure and cholesterol levels, reducing or stopping smoking, exercising more and losing weight if needed, and eating a diet low in sodium can all protect the heart.

Angina is a squeezing type of chest pain that happens when the muscles around the heart don't get enough oxygen. It can be regular or infrequent. Usually, angina is caused by coronary heart disease. However, not all chest pain is angina. Chest pain can also be caused by a lung infection or panic attack, for example, so it is important to have any sudden pain checked.

Arrhythmia is the word for when the heart beats too fast, too slow, or irregularly with skipped beats. It can feel frightening, and depending on the type it can be dangerous, but in most cases arrhythmia is not serious and can be treated. It is very common, especially in older adults.

Heart valve problems can happen in any one of the the heart's four valves that keep blood flowing where it needs to go. Babies can be born with problems in their heart valves, or valves can be damaged by infections. The valves can stiffen and become less mobile, or they can stop closing properly and 'leak' when the heart beats. Valve problems can usually be repaired surgically.

Medicare Procedure and Patient Information

2012 Medicare Procedure Volume

The top procedures that Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD treated as a cardiac electrophysiologist in Petaluma, CA during 2012 were cardiac procedures, ultrasound (sonogram), hospital care and inpatient care.

Volume of procedures performed by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD for Medicare patients.

cardiac procedures	265
doctor visit	549
hospital care	94
implant surgery	15
inpatient care	94
minimally invasive procedures	15
stress testing	41
ultrasound (sonogram)	209

Medicare Procedure and Patient Information

2013 Medicare Procedure Volume

The top procedures that Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD treated as a cardiac electrophysiologist in Petaluma, CA during 2013 were cardiac procedures, ultrasound (sonogram), hospital care and inpatient care.

Volume of procedures performed by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD for Medicare patients.

cardiac procedures	185
doctor visit	380
hospital care	48
implant surgery	12
inpatient care	48
minimally invasive procedures	12
stress testing	18
ultrasound (sonogram)	155

2013 Medicare Patient Data

Information about Medicare patients treated by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD.

**Gender**
Male	435
Female	427

**Ethnicity**
Non-Hispanic White	815
Black	0
Hispanic	21
Asian	0
Other	0
Native American	0

**Age**
From 65 to 74	278
From 75 to 84	314
85 and over	172
Less than 65	98

Conditions of Medicare patients treated by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD in 2013

Hypertension	70
High Cholesterol	54
Stroke	8
Ischemic Heart Disease	56
Depression	21
Chronic Kidney Disease	28
Asthma	8
Osteoperosis	8
Atrial Fibrilation	29
Heart Failure	36
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease	20
Diabetes	35
Dementia	11
Cancer	14

Medicare Procedure and Patient Information

2014 Medicare Procedure Volume

The top procedures that Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD treated as a cardiac electrophysiologist in Petaluma, CA during 2014 were ultrasound (sonogram), cardiac procedures, hospital care and inpatient care.

Volume of procedures performed by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD for Medicare patients.

cardiac procedures	19
doctor visit	410
hospital care	17
inpatient care	17
ultrasound (sonogram)	19

2014 Medicare Patient Data

Information about Medicare patients treated by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD.

**Gender**
Male	315
Female	265

**Ethnicity**
Non-Hispanic White	554
Black	0
Hispanic	0
Asian	0
Other	0
Native American	0

**Age**
From 65 to 74	181
From 75 to 84	227
85 and over	118
Less than 65	54

Conditions of Medicare patients treated by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD in 2014

Hypertension	70
High Cholesterol	55
Stroke	4
Ischemic Heart Disease	53
Depression	25
Chronic Kidney Disease	32
Asthma	7
Osteoperosis	7
Atrial Fibrilation	34
Heart Failure	38
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease	18
Diabetes	37
Dementia	10
Cancer	14

Medicare Procedure and Patient Information

2015 Medicare Procedure Volume

The top procedures that Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD treated as a cardiac electrophysiologist in Petaluma, CA during 2015 were ultrasound (sonogram), cardiac procedures, hospital care and inpatient care.

Volume of procedures performed by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD for Medicare patients.

cardiac procedures	35
doctor visit	318
hospital care	12
inpatient care	12
ultrasound (sonogram)	35

2015 Medicare Patient Data

Information about Medicare patients treated by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD.

**Gender**
Male	592
Female	492

**Ethnicity**
Non-Hispanic White	1030
Black	0
Hispanic	0
Asian	0
Other	0
Native American	0

**Age**
From 65 to 74	340
From 75 to 84	396
85 and over	262
Less than 65	86

Conditions of Medicare patients treated by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD in 2015

Hypertension	72
High Cholesterol	59
Stroke	10
Ischemic Heart Disease	54
Depression	28
Chronic Kidney Disease	35
Asthma	14
Osteoperosis	9
Atrial Fibrilation	32
Heart Failure	41
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease	19
Diabetes	37
Dementia	15
Cancer	12

Medicare Procedure and Patient Information

2016 Medicare Procedure Volume

The top procedures that Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD treated as a cardiac electrophysiologist in Petaluma, CA during 2016 were ultrasound (sonogram) and cardiac procedures.

Volume of procedures performed by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD for Medicare patients.

cardiac procedures	53
doctor visit	420
ultrasound (sonogram)	53

2016 Medicare Patient Data

Information about Medicare patients treated by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD.

**Gender**
Male	517
Female	360

**Ethnicity**
Non-Hispanic White	821
Black	0
Hispanic	22
Asian	11
Other	0
Native American	0

**Age**
From 65 to 74	289
From 75 to 84	295
85 and over	203
Less than 65	90

Conditions of Medicare patients treated by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD in 2016

Hypertension	72
High Cholesterol	55
Stroke	7
Ischemic Heart Disease	58
Depression	25
Chronic Kidney Disease	37
Asthma	21
Osteoperosis	8
Atrial Fibrilation	32
Heart Failure	43
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease	19
Diabetes	35
Dementia	15
Cancer	12

Medicare Procedure and Patient Information

2017 Medicare Procedure Volume

The top procedures that Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD treated as a cardiac electrophysiologist in Petaluma, CA during 2017 were ultrasound (sonogram) and cardiac procedures.

Volume of procedures performed by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD for Medicare patients.

cardiac procedures	26
doctor visit	182
ultrasound (sonogram)	26

2017 Medicare Patient Data

Information about Medicare patients treated by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD.

**Gender**
Male	379
Female	285

**Ethnicity**
Non-Hispanic White	625
Black	0
Hispanic	19
Asian	0
Other	0
Native American	0

**Age**
From 65 to 74	200
From 75 to 84	245
85 and over	163
Less than 65	56

Conditions of Medicare patients treated by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD in 2017

Hypertension	74
High Cholesterol	52
Stroke	8
Ischemic Heart Disease	57
Depression	27
Chronic Kidney Disease	42
Asthma	8
Osteoperosis	7
Atrial Fibrilation	34
Heart Failure	45
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease	20
Diabetes	34
Dementia	17
Cancer	11

Medicare Procedure and Patient Information

2018 Medicare Procedure Volume

Volume of procedures performed by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD for Medicare patients.

doctor visit	19

2018 Medicare Patient Data

Information about Medicare patients treated by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD.

**Gender**
Male	85
Female	62

**Age**
From 65 to 74	0
From 75 to 84	56
85 and over	54
Less than 65	0

Conditions of Medicare patients treated by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD in 2018

Hypertension	74
High Cholesterol	59
Stroke	0
Ischemic Heart Disease	60
Depression	27
Chronic Kidney Disease	34
Asthma	0
Osteoperosis	9
Atrial Fibrilation	32
Heart Failure	45
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease	19
Diabetes	31
Dementia	18
Cancer	14

Medicare Procedure and Patient Information

Average Medicare Procedure Volume From 2012 - 2018

Volume of procedures performed by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD for Medicare patients.

The highest averages for the top procedures that Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD treated as a cardiac electrophysiologist in Petaluma, CA were cardiac procedures, ultrasound (sonogram), hospital care and inpatient care.

cardiac procedures	97
doctor visit	325
hospital care	42
implant surgery	13
inpatient care	42
minimally invasive procedures	13
stress testing	29
ultrasound (sonogram)	82

Average Medicare Patient Data From 2012 - 2018

Information about Medicare patients treated by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD.

**Gender**
Male	331
Female	270

**Ethnicity**
Black / African American	0
Asian / Pacific Islander	1
Non-Hispanic White	549
Native American / Alaskan Native	0
Hispanic	8
Other	0

**Age**
75 to 84	219
85 and over	138
Less than 65	54
65 to 74	184

Average of Total of Conditions of Medicare patients treated by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD From 2012 - 2018

The highest averages of the most common conditions of Medicare patients that Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD treated were hypertension, ischemic heart disease, high cholesterol and heart failure.

Hypertension	61
High Cholesterol	47
Stroke	5
Ischemic Heart Disease	48
Depression	21
Chronic Kidney Disease	29
Asthma	8
Osteoporosis	6
Heart Failure	35
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease	16
Diabetes	29
Atrial Fibrillation	27
Dementia	12
Cancer	11

Education & Training

He is certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine, Cardiovascular Disease and has a state license in Idaho.

Board Certification: American Board of Internal Medicine, Cardiovascular Disease

Licensed In: Idaho

Affiliations & Hospitals

Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD is associated with these hospitals and organizations:

Providence

Providence Medical Foundation

Providence Medical Group Sonoma

Insurance Information

Please note: Insurance information may change at any time, and the provider may accept your insurance plan even if it is not listed below. Please contact the provider's office to confirm that your insurance is accepted.

Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD appears to accept the following insurance providers: Aetna PPO, CIGNA PPO, CIGNA HMO, Western Health Advantage HMO, Blue Shield of California, MultiPlan PPO, Medicare Advantage, HealthSmart, Interplan PPO, TriWest, Anthem Blue Cross HMO, Anthem Blue Cross PPO, Health Net PPO, Health Net HMO, Anthem, Coventry PPO, United Healthcare PPO, United Healthcare HMO, US Family Health Plan, Aetna Medicare PPO, Partnership Health Plan of California and CoventryFirst Health PPO.

Insurance Accepted by Provider includes:

According to our sources, Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD accepts the following insurance providers:

Aetna PPO

CIGNA PPO

CIGNA HMO

Western Health Advantage HMO

Blue Shield of California

MultiPlan PPO

Medicare Advantage

HealthSmart

Interplan PPO

TriWest

Anthem Blue Cross HMO

Anthem Blue Cross PPO

Health Net PPO

Health Net HMO

Anthem

Coventry PPO

United Healthcare PPO

United Healthcare HMO

US Family Health Plan

Aetna Medicare PPO

Partnership Health Plan of California

CoventryFirst Health PPO

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General Payments

These charts describe general payments received by Dr. Walter L. Seale, MD. Doctors may receive payments for a number of reasons, including meal compensation, travel compensation, and consulting.

**Payments by Company**
AtriCure, Inc.	$170 Cardiovascular $170
Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc	$17 XARELTO $17

**Types of Payments**
Food and Beverage	$187

Biography

Dr. Walter Seale specializes in adult cardiology and cardiac electrophysiology (heart rhythm). His areas of expertise include the following: myxoma, coronary angiogram, and rheumatic heart disease. Dr. Seale accepts Anthem, Blue California, HealthSmart, and more. He is professionally affiliated with Providence Medical Foundation. He welcomes new patients at his office inPetaluma, CA as reported by Providence Medical Foundation.