Heart & Vascular News

Heart specialists at the Washington University and Barnes-Jewish Heart & Vascular Center were the first in Missouri to implant a subcutaneous implantable cardioverter defibrillator (S-ICD) into a patient during a procedure that took place on Friday, Nov. 29. Unlike the traditional ICD used to help treat arrhythmias such as tachycardia, the S-ICD does not place wires inside the heart or blood vessels.

A device approved today by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) to treat leaky mitral valves was first used in this region as part of a clinical trial at the Washington University and Barnes-Jewish Heart & Vascular Center. This new non-surgical alternative for mitral valve repair, which involves using a small clip, offers hope to the more than four million Americans with leaky mitral valves.

Barnes-Jewish Hospital was recently honored by the American Heart Association (AHA) with two prestigious awards: the 2012-2013 “Mission: Lifeline Gold Award” and the “Get With The Guidelines®–Stroke” Gold Plus Performance Achievement Award.

It’s one of the most common heart arrhythmias. But while the symptoms for atrial fibrillation (AFIB) vary, many with the abnormal heart rhythm have one thing in common – a greater chance of having a stroke.

Now, a new non-invasive procedure at the Washington University and Barnes-Jewish Heart & Vascular Center aims to decrease that risk and the need for patients to be on blood thinning medications. It focuses on a part of the heart called the left atrial appendage. 

Washington University physicians at Barnes-Jewish Hospital were the first in the country to implant the Impella CP into a heart failure patient on Sept. 28, via a catheter, rather than an open procedure. About the size of a coffee stirrer, the new device is the world’s smallest heart pump, yet it can support the heart by pumping up to four liters of blood per minute.