Left ventricular assist devices as destination therapy.

Ethical challenges with the left ventricular assist device as a destination therapy

The left ventricular assist device was originally designed to be surgically implanted as a bridge to transplantation for patients with chronic end-stage heart failure. On the basis of the REMATCH trial, the US Food and Drug Administration and the US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services approved permanent implantation of the left ventricular assist device as a destination therapy in Medicare...

Clinical and cost-effectiveness of left ventricular assist devices as destination therapy for people with end-stage heart failure: a systematic review and economic evaluation.

OBJECTIVES The clinical and cost-effectiveness of left ventricular assist devices as destination therapy for people with end-stage heart failure is assessed through a systematic review and economic evaluation. METHODS Systematic review was performed of randomized controlled trials, quasiexperimental studies, case series, and case studies identified through searching eighteen electronic databa...

Letter by moreno regarding article, "cost-effectiveness analysis of continuous flow left ventricular assist devices as destination therapy".

Driveline Infection in Ventricular Assist Devices and Its Implication in the Present Era of Destination Therapy

Advances in mechanical circulatory support devices provided the technology to develop long-term, implantable left ventricular assist devices as bridge to transplant, destination therapy, and in a lesser group of patients, as bridge to recovery. Despite the benefits from this innovative therapy, with their increased use, many complications have been encountered, one of the most common being infe...

Advanced Heart Failure and Left Ventricular Assist Devices- Are we there yet? - A Review of the Literature

Left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) have revolutionized therapy for patients with Stage D heart failure (HF) with reduced systolic function providing not only improved survival benefits but also meaningful changes in quality of life and functional capacity. With technological advances and improved durability of devices, length of survival has significantly improved. With continued organ don...