Heart Failure Care
Heart failure, also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), occurs when the heart can no longer pump enough blood to meet the body's needs. Different from a heart attack, heart failure is a chronic, long-term condition that prevents the heart from functioning effectively.
Heart care specialists at ShorePoint Health Port Charlotte utilize advanced diagnostic technology to determine the cause and extent of heart failure. Doctors and nurses who specialize in heart failure provide a management program that offers:
-
Medical management - Medications are used to lower blood pressure, eliminate excess water, prevent clotting, slow heart rate or alter hormones that affect the heart. Cardiologists can develop a program that combines medication and lifestyle changes to effectively manage heart failure.
-
Risk-factor management - Lifestyle changes such as losing weight and eating more healthfully, controlling blood pressure, abstaining from alcohol and smoking, and getting enough rest can help improve heart health and prevent further damage.
-
Minimally invasive cardiac catheterization techniques - Outpatient procedures such as angioplasty and stent placement are used to open blocked arteries.
-
Surgery - Experienced cardiac surgeons utilize advanced technology to deliver heart failure treatment, including implantable devices such as pacemakers and defibrillators. Surgeons use minimally invasive techniques whenever possible.
Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR)
ShorePoint Health Port Charlotte performed the first TAVR procedure in Charlotte County on Friday, July 12, 2019. TAVR is a minimally invasive approach to treat a condition known as aortic stenosis, the narrowing of the aortic valve, which separates the main pumping chamber of the heart from the rest of the body. Now patients no longer have to travel out of the county to receive this life-saving treatment.
Aortic stenosis is a condition that presents with symptoms of shortness of breath with activity, chest pain, and even fainting spells, also known as syncope. Over time, this places significant stress on the heart, resulting in weakening of the heart muscle, and ultimately, heart failure. Untreated, the condition carries a very poor prognosis, with an average survival of just two years.
During the TAVR procedure, a balloon-expandable valve or self-expanding valve is delivered to the heart via a catheter inserted into the femoral artery in the groin. The new valve is then deployed inside of the native aortic heart valve, thus enlarging the area for blood to flow out of the heart. There are no incisions, and the heart does not need to be stopped, which could allow for much faster recovery when compared to traditional surgical valve replacement.
Learn more about the first TAVR surgery in Charlotte County.
Heart Failure Monitoring
ShorePoint Health Port Charlotte is the first facility in Charlotte County to implant a miniaturized, wireless monitoring sensor to manage heart failure (HF). This system is the first and only FDA-approved heart failure monitoring device that has been proven to significantly reduce hospital admissions when used by physicians to manage heart failure.
The system features a sensor that is implanted in the pulmonary artery (PA) during a non-surgical procedure to directly measure PA pressure. Increased PA pressures appear before weight and blood pressure changes, which are often used as indirect measures of worsening heart failure. The new system allows patients to transmit daily sensor readings from their homes to their health care providers allowing for personalized and proactive management to reduce the likelihood of hospitalization.
The system’s sensor is designed to last the lifetime of the patient and doesn’t require batteries. Once implanted, the wireless sensor sends pressure readings to an external patient electronic system. There is no pain or sensation for the patient during the readings. The system allows the patients to transmit critical information about their heart failure status to a clinician on a regular basis, without the need for additional clinic or hospital visits. This provides clinicians with the ability to detect worsening heart failure sooner and adjust treatment to reduce the likelihood that the patient will need to be hospitalized.
Ask your doctor if this monitoring solution is right for you.
Heart Pump
ShorePoint Health Port Charlotte is the first facility in Charlotte County to offer heart pumps for patients with advanced coronary disease. Deemed “the world’s smallest heart pump,” this technology is designed to provide minimally invasive, temporary support for patients with heart failure. The pump enables the heart to rest and recover by improving blood flow and/or performing the pumping of the heart.
The device is less than the width of a pencil, and the pump is thinner than an eraser. This tiny device acts like a temporary artificial heart as it maintains blood flow through the body during a cardiac procedure. It works by pumping blood throughout the body when the heart is too weak to do it itself – providing time for the heart to rest and heal.
This device is the only FDA-approved percutaneous hemodynamic support device determined to be safe and effective for the treatment of elective and urgent high risk patients, and recently received expanded FDA approval.