Page 15 - Christiana Care Focus February 2019

| Heart & Vascular Health Next generation care for patients
The Center for Heart & Vascular Health at Christiana Care is the only site in Delaware to offer an advanced technology that is helping more patients with serious heart failure live longer, more productive lives.
Surgeons in the Heart Failure Program at Christiana Care are now able to implant the HeartMate 3 (HM3) left ventricular assist device (LVAD). The HM3 is smaller and has less risk of clotting compared to its predecessor HeartMate II which the Christiana Care Advanced Heart Failure team
had been using previously.
“This is the best and safest product on the market and the next step in the continuous evolution of the LVAD,” said Sourin Banerji, M.D., who leads the Heart Failure Program. “Patients who cannot receive a heart transplant because of issues including age, diabetes and obesity can pursue LVAD implantation as an option. With the HM3, early survival is now approaching that of transplant and continues to evolve.”
Originally, LVADs were large machines that kept patients alive while they were awaiting heart transplants. But with tens of thousands of patients on waiting lists each year for an estimated 2,000 hearts, LVAD is increasingly used as a destination therapy, a device patients will rely on for the rest of their lives.
“This latest LVAD means more patients will live longer and enjoy a better quality of life than they would otherwise if they did not have access to this option,” Dr.Banerjisaid. CONTINUED
with heart failure
“We talked a lot, especially about his family,” she recalled. “He was Tafraid that he was going to die and not see his children grow up.”
hrough his interpreters, he gained a thorough understanding of the surgery and the positive impact it would have on his life. That knowledge, imparted in his native tongue, made him feel safe and cared for. He
learned to trust his care team and cooperate with them as a partner in his health.
On Sept. 10, 2017, cardiac surgeon Franjo Siric, M.D., implanted Denizac’s LVAD. When he was recovering in the cardiac intensive care unit, Language Services provided interpreters around the clock.
Soon after his return home, his children, Luelesihka and Miguel, came for an extended visit. “I explained the machine to them, and they accepted it right away,” he said. “When my little boy heard the battery alarm go off, he ran to get me a new battery.”
He talked with them about a heart-healthy diet that is low in fat and salt, and showed them how to read the labels on food. He explained
that he limits his intake of liquids because people with heart failure tend to retain fluids.
Sourin Banerji, M.D., who leads the Heart Failure team, said Denizac’s case shows how patients benefit when colleagues throughout the health system work together as a team.
“To get Miguel where he needed to be required Language Services, Nutrition and Behavioral Health, in addition to Heart Failure,” he said. “It is remarkable what can be accomplished when we all work together.”
Today, has completed cardiac rehabilitation and he is back to riding his bicycle. With few exceptions, he can do many things he’s always enjoyed. Ultimately, he would like to have a heart transplant.
In the meantime, he is continuing to partner with his team at Christiana Care.
“I’ve been coming here for a year, and we have really good communication,” he said. “It’s not like going to the doctor. It’s more like checking in with friends.” 
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