title: Myocardial recovery: a focus on the impact of left ventricular assist devices.
abstract: Heart failure remains one of the most prevalent diseases worldwide and in recent decades, left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) have become an important treatment option. With increasing device experience, there is particular interest in the use of LVADs as a bridge to recovery that allows the patient's heart to undergo reverse remodeling, whereby the device can be explanted and the heart can function at an improved state. There are many considerations that play a role in this process, including the ability of the device to unload the heart, the innate physiology of the heart to recover and the use of concomitant therapies. This review provides an overview of the most current literature as it pertains to these processes and gives a view into the future directions of LVADs as a tool for achieving myocardial recovery.
authors.affiliation: Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Cleveland, OH, USA.
authors.forename: M Scott
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Halbreiner
authors.forename: Vincent
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Cruz
authors.forename: Randall
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Starling
authors.forename: Edward
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Soltesz
authors.forename: Nicholas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Smedira
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Moravec
authors.forename: Nader
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Moazami
mesh_terms: D004867:Equipment Design; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D006353:Heart-Assist Devices; D006801:Humans; D009206:Myocardium / Q000378:metabolism; D015995:Prevalence; D020257:Ventricular Remodeling / Q000502:physiology*