title: The left ventricular assist device (LVAD). A bridge to heart transplantation.
abstract: Since its approval by the USFDA in 1998, the LVAD has been used primarily as a bridge to transplantation. It has been effective in improving the overall health and debilitated states in patients with cardiomyopathies and CHF by restoring them to a near normal hemodynamic state and improving end-organ blood flow. Recent studies indicate that the LVAD might be useful as a destination therapy, making transplantation unnecessary, providing one solution to the imbalance of heart donor supply to transplant candidate need.
authors.affiliation: Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee, USA.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Camp
mesh_terms: D000075202:Contraindications; D003663:Decision Trees; D006304:Health Status; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D016027:Heart Transplantation / Q000451:nursing* / Q000523:psychology; D006353:Heart-Assist Devices / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D018579:Patient Selection; D011300:Preoperative Care / Q000379:methods* / Q000451:nursing*; D014850:Waiting Lists