Left Ventricular Assist Devices 101: Shared Care for General Cardiologists and Primary Care

Abstract

Ambulatory patients with a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) are increasing in number, and so is their life expectancy. Thus, there is an increasing need for care of these patients by non-LVAD specialists, such as providers in the emergency department, urgent care centers, community-based hospitals, outpatient clinics, etc. Non-LVAD specialists will increasingly come across LVAD patients and should be equipped with the knowledge and skills to provide initial assessment and management for these complex patients. These encounters may be for LVAD-related or unrelated issues. However, there are limited data and guidelines to assist non-LVAD specialists in caring for these complex patients. The aim of our review, targeting primary care providers (both inpatient and outpatient), general cardiologists, and other providers is to describe the current status of durable LVAD therapy in adults, patient selection, management strategies, complications and to summarize current outcome data.

Early sST2 Liberation after Implantation of a Left Ventricular Assist Device in Patients with Advanced Heart Failure

“…The death rate in our patient cohort was 35% at 1 year, a rate comparable to that reported by previous studies [1,2]. Circulating sST2 levels were higher than normal (mean 3 Journal of Immunology Research 62.5 ng/ml; reference value < 35 ng/ml) even before implantation.…”

“…LVAD support is also increasingly being used in the less ill patient population for heart tissue recovery. Patients' clinical outcomes following LVAD implantation continue to improve, with 1-year survival estimates ranging between 52 and 83% [1,2]. However, adverse events are common and have a detrimental impact on the success of LVAD support.…”

Comparative assessment of different versions of axial and centrifugal LVADs: A review

“…Furthermore, their smaller size reduces the invasiveness associated with the implantation procedure 23 . Depending upon the impeller rotation and blood flow path, CF blood pumps are generally categorized into the centrifugal flow and axial flow types 24 . A schematic of general centrifugal and axial flow types of blood pump is shown in Figure 1.…”

Teletıp, Uzaktan Hasta Yönetimi ve İmplante Kalp Destek Cihazları

“…Aynı zamanda bunlara ek olarak uzaktan takip sistemi, hastaların hastalığı hakkındaki endişelerini de azaltmakta ve gerekli sağlık personeline rahatça ulaşabilme güvencesini vererek, olumlu bir etki bırakmaktadır. Hastaların sağlık bilgilerinin uzaktan sağlık personeli ile paylaşması, ana merkeze gerekli verilerinin aktarılması ve ortaya çıkan olumsuz durumların erkenden teşhis ve tedavisinin yapılabilmesi olanağı uzmanlaşmış merkezlerde olan hasta yükü de azaltılmaktadır (Singhvi, 2019).…”