LVAD therapy is new option for Maimonides heart patients
The Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) Program at Maimonides Medical Center, the first of its kind in Brooklyn, has received advanced certification in Destination Therapy from the Joint Commission. This groundbreaking new form of treatment is offered at just over 100 hospitals in the nation.
“This is an important milestone for our program, and terrific news for our patients,” said Dr. Paul Saunders, Cardiothoracic Surgeon at Maimonides who is co-director of the LVAD Program. “The Joint Commission accreditation affirms our commitment to providing the finest care possible for patients with heart failure.”
The comprehensive Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) program at Maimonides has long been known for outstanding care and patient outcomes. Ranked among the best in the nation for over a decade, this program now has a new and exciting surgical component.
An LVAD is a surgically implanted pump that takes over the function of a heart weakened by congestive heart failure (CHF). LVADs have historically been used to “bridge” patients to heart transplant. A new approach, called “destination therapy,” serves as an alternative to heart transplant for those patients with severe CHF who are unable to receive a transplant.