Temporary Therapies for Advanced Heart Failure
Short-term treatments are sometimes needed to help a patient recover or in between other treatments. These temporary treatments may be needed forever if a patient’s health worsens.
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A small balloon is placed inside the aorta and connected to a machine outside the body for just a few days. The machine inflates the balloon when the heart relaxes between beats and deflates the balloon before the heart pumps. This lessens the heart’s workload and increases blood flow from the heart.
A left ventricular assist device takes over the workload of the left ventricle, the heart chamber that pumps blood to the body, for up to two weeks. A tube placed in the left atrium pulls oxygen-rich blood out of the heart and circulates it throughout the body.
Blood is sent through an extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machine to increase the amount of oxygen in the blood and return it to the body. ECMO is typically only needed for days or weeks.
A positive inotropic drug is a therapy given intravenously to make the heart beat more forcefully.
Advanced heart failure can put a lot of strain on the kidneys, making them less able to get rid of sodium and water. If the kidneys fail, renal replacement therapy, such as dialysis, can remove waste and extra fluid from the blood.
This device may be temporary for patients waiting for a heart donor or permanent when a transplant isn’t an option. The pump is placed in the upper part of the abdomen and acts as a mechanical heart, pulling blood from the left ventricle and sending it to the aorta for delivery to the rest of the body.