Chelation therapy, long used to treat heavy metal poisoning, is now gaining attention as an effective therapy for certain heart conditions.

The use of chelation dates back to World War II when it was used as an antidote against arsenic-containing gas exposure and then later for the workers who painted Navy ships with lead-based paint.

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Chelation, which means "to grab" or "to bind" is still used to treat heavy metal poisoning from lead, mercury, arsenic and cadmium.

Chelation therapy involves administering drugs, the chelating medicines, typically through an intravenous drip, into the body. The chelators bind to metals, which are then excreted through urine.

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Now, according to Chauncey Crandall, M.D., world-renowned cardiologist and director of preventive medicine at the Palm Beach Cardiovascular Clinic in Florida, there is interest in using chelation therapy to treat heart disease.

What was found is that the chelating agents can also bind to calcium, says Crandall, editor of the popular "Dr. Crandall's Heart Health Report". As a result, people with heart disease have benefited from chelation therapy.

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In particular, chelation may help patients with peripheral artery disease -- a condition in which the arteries that supply blood to the legs are narrowed. This can cause pain in the legs when walking, called claudication. Crandall tells Newsline that chelation therapy relieved the leg pain of claudication in some patients.

"It's a treatment that has worked in the past, and there's much interest in it right now," says Crandall.

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