NEW ORLEANS – The John Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute (JOHVI) is the only facility in Louisiana and Mississippi to implant the HeartMate 3 LVAD – which recently received FDA approval – as an option for physicians managing advanced heart failure patients in need of short-term hemodynamic support (bridge-to-transplant or bridge to myocardial recovery). The system also provides patients living with their device new benefits that embody the evolution of left ventricular assist device (LVAD) therapy, such as improved blood flow in a pump that uses full magnetic levitation to reduce trauma to blood passing through the system.
Most recently, the HeartMate 3 LVAD was implanted in a 77-year-old patient – the oldest patient to receive the HeartMate 3 within the two states — and 16-year-old pediatric patient. Each suffered from shortness of breath before being transferred to Ochsner Medical Center and both patients received the life-saving surgery giving them a new lease on life.
For the privacy and protection of those involved, no information will be released on the patient or their family at this time.
More than 5.7 million people in the U.S. suffer from heart failure and approximately 915,000 new patients are diagnosed with the disease each year. For advanced heart failure patients who can no longer rely on earlier stage treatment options, an LVAD can help their weakened heart pump blood through the body and provide crucial support as patients await further treatment, including heart transplants.
“Ochsner’s continued focus on innovation through utilizing new technologies is improving health outcomes and quality of life for our patients,” said Aditya Bansal, MD, surgical director for Heart Failure at John Ochsner Heart and Vascular System. “Ochsner has long been an innovator in cardiac care, as the first in the area to offer non-surgical methods of repairing heart valves, state-of-the-art treatment for heart rhythm disorders and laser technology to remove implanted heart devices.”
Ochsner’s team of cardiologists and surgeons work closely with each patient to develop targeted and effective healthcare plans. Ochsner current participates in 80 clinical trials with the goal of advancing knowledge of the mechanisms, diagnoses and treatments of cardiovascular disease. Ochsner recently performed its 950th heart transplant, marking a significant milestone.
Abbott designed the HeartMate 3 to take LVAD therapy further and provide physicians new benefits for patients. In developing the HeartMate 3, which is the latest LVAD design, Abbott reduced the device’s size and improved design to reduce complications and give patients a better quality of life.
U.S. approval of the HeartMate 3 was supported by the MOMENTUM 3 clinical study. Ochsner implanted their first Heartmate3 in 2015 during the study phase. In that study, patients who received a HeartMate 3 had a significant improvement in their heart failure status, an 83 percent increase in their walk distance and a 68 percent improvement in quality of life at six months. Patients receiving HeartMate 3 also had an 86 percent survival rate with freedom from disabling stroke and reoperation to replace the pump at six months.
For more information about Ochsner’s Cardiovascular, please visit www.ochsner.org/cardiology.
