Oklahoma Heart Institute is the first hospital in northeastern Oklahoma to offer the Medtronic HeartWare ™ HVAD ™ System as a destination therapy option for patients suffering from advanced heart failure who are not candidates for a heart transplant. The HVAD System is also available as a bridge to heart transplant in eligible patients. The HVAD System is a ventricular assist device (VAD) that helps the heart pump and increases the amount of blood that circulates through the body.
The HVAD System features the world’s smallest, commercially available, centrifugal flow pump. Weighing only 160 grams, the HVAD System’s continuous flow pump is 30 percent thinner and has 38 percent less volume than other centrifugal-flow devices.
In the United States, more than 6 million Americans are living with heart failure, and more than 250,000 patients have advanced heart failure and are ineligible for a heart transplant because of co-morbidities or health histories. VAD therapy has been demonstrated to extend life, augment cardiac function and improve quality of life for patients who may no longer benefit from earlier stage treatment options.
How the HVAD System Works