Advanced Heart Failure

Trust your heart care with the first and only multidisciplinary heart failure team in the state.

As the first and only multidisciplinary heart failure team in the state, our team includes pharmacists, specialty-trained nurses, exercise physiologists, social workers, dietitians, and expert physician team members, who go above and beyond to bring the highest quality and most comprehensive service for patients across the region. Having a multidisciplinary team means our patients have someone to assist in every aspect of their care.

Our treatment goals are to:

• • Relieve symptoms and improve quality of life
  • Slow disease progression
  • Reduce the need for emergency room visits and hospitalization
  • Help people live longer
  • Treatment options depends on the type, cause, symptoms and severity of the heart failure. Usually, more than one therapy is used.

Conditions and Treatments

Heart failure is the most common heart-related reason for hospital admission and readmission in West Virginia. Although heart failure is a serious condition that progressively gets worse over time, certain cases can be reversed with treatment. Even when the heart muscle is impaired, there are a number of treatments that can relieve symptoms and stop or slow the gradual worsening of the condition.

Conditions and treatments include:

• Heart Failure
• Heart Transplant
• Cardiogenic Shock
• Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD)
• Pulmonary Hypertension
• Cardiac Amyloidosis
• Cardiac Sarcoidosis
• Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy
• Infiltrative Heart Disease
• Cardio-Oncology

The Center for Advanced Heart Failure and Mechanical Cardiology Support

The Center for Advanced Heart Failure and Mechanical Cardiology Support, the only such center in the region, is an area of special care at WVU Medicine. It provides IV inotropic therapy to stable outpatients with advanced heart failure, with a goal of improving functional level and avoiding hospitalization.

The center is an important resource for the state, reducing the number of emergency room visits and lowering health costs for heart patients. Many patients receive treatment through medication. The treatments are especially useful for patients who are at the maximum dosage of other heart drugs, people awaiting a heart transplant, or people who have a heart muscle disease. The treatment also helps patients breathe more easily.

Patient Support Groups

WVU Heart and Vascular Institute Heart Failure Facebook Support Group
This private Facebook group is a resource where patients diagnosed with heart failure can connect with others while learning about their condition and its management. To join the group, visit www.facebook.com/groups/wvuheartfailure. For details, contact Debra Hairston at (304) 285-7900 or email debra.hairston2@wvumedicine.org.