{"id":47896,"date":"2004-10-05T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2004-10-05T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2004\/10\/05\/mechanical-device-gives-heart-a-rest-and-patient-renewed-energy\/"},"modified":"2022-08-28T21:42:12","modified_gmt":"2022-08-29T02:42:12","slug":"mechanical-device-gives-heart-a-rest-and-patient-renewed-energy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2004\/10\/05\/mechanical-device-gives-heart-a-rest-and-patient-renewed-energy\/","title":{"rendered":"Mechanical Device Gives Heart a Rest And Patient Renewed Energy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Using a small electronic pumping device, called the HeartMate\u00ae, physicians at The Nebraska Medical Center have given a Nebraska woman reason to hope.<\/DIV>
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Kathryn Stull, 55, of Gothenburg, Neb., is a self-confessed chatterbox. So when she stopped talking, her family knew something was wrong. <\/DIV>
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\u201cI simply didn\u2019t have the energy to hold a conversation,\u201d said Kathryn.  In fact, she didn\u2019t have energy to do anything but sleep \u2013 sometimes up to 17 hours a day. <\/DIV>
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Kathryn\u2019s heart was operating at about 8 percent efficiency when we saw her.  That means her blood wasn\u2019t circulating like it should – jeopardizing her vital organs and limbs.<\/DIV>
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In an effort to keep her heart going, doctors implanted an automatic defibrillator that would shock Kathryn\u2019s heart if it shopped.  \u201cDuring one night, the defibrillator went off eight or nine times.  Once is enough for me.  The feeling raises you right off the bed.  You can\u2019t control it,\u201d Kathryn explained.<\/DIV>
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With the defibrillator onboard, Kathryn came to The Nebraska Medical Center where Deepak Gangahar, M.D., chief of cardio-thoracic surgery at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) and his team evaluated Stull and placed her on the waiting list for a heart transplant.<\/DIV>
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\u201cI had three options: change medications; go on an IV drip; or the HeartMate\u00ae, which is a left ventricular assisted device (LVAD),\u201d said Kathryn.  \u201cDr. Gangahar considered the LVAD a last-ditch option because it meant another surgery, which might be too much for my heart.\u201d<\/DIV>
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\u201cKate\u2019s condition was deteriorating every day and adversely affecting her other organ systems.  She was on heart transplant waiting list but we were not getting any donor calls,\u201d said Dr. Gangahar.  \u201cThe only way to keep her alive was with the use of LVAD.  By implanting the LVAD, HeartMate\u00ae, our emergency was over and we could now let her regain the strength that she had gradually lost over the past 6 to 12 months.\u201d <\/DIV>
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\u201cThe HeartMate\u00ae is a mechanical assist device to boost heart function. It takes over the pump function of a weak heart and restores effective circulation of blood in the patient\u2019s body,\u201d explained Mohammad Quader, M.D., cardio-thoracic surgeon with the Nebraska Heart Institute and member of the heart transplant team at UNMC.  \u201cIn addition to giving complete rest to a weak heart it has an inbuilt ability to increase blood flow when a patient exercises. It is an ideal option for patients who have a very weak heart and are on a waiting list for heart transplantation,\u201d Dr. Quader added.<\/DIV>
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Kathryn can sum up in three words what the LVAD means to her.  \u201cIt\u2019s my life,\u201d she said.  \u201cIf it weren\u2019t for this device, I\u2019d be in bed or dead.  Now I\u2019m walking two blocks a day \u2013 and that\u2019s a victory for me.  I can go to restaurants and shopping, while waiting for a heart transplant,\u201d Kathryn said. Anywhere that Kathryn\u2019s battery packs can go \u2013 she can go.<\/DIV>
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\u201cWhat we did for Kate was \u2018bridge to transplant,\u2019\u201d explained Dr. Gangahar. \u201cHer ultimate treatment is a heart transplant operation. Heart transplant is the gold standard in the treatment of severe heart failure. But patients who suffer from advanced heart failure, can not be managed with conventional medical means and are not suitable for heart transplant, are then considered for \u2018destination therapy\u2019 with LVAD. In this case LVAD is the final treatment for these patients,\u201d said Dr. Gangahar.<\/DIV>
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Although Kathryn needs help doing many of the things she once did alone, she looks at the LVAD as an adjustment.  \u201cThe device gives you limits, but it gives you freedom,\u201d she said.<\/DIV>
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Kathryn remains on the heart transplant list.  There is no telling how long she will wait for a donor heart to become available.  She is making the most of her life enjoying her husband, daughter and three grandsons.  Kathryn also is looking ahead to the time when she can return to Gothenburg and the home she loves and misses so much.<\/DIV><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Using a small electronic pumping device, called the HeartMate\u00ae, physicians at The Nebraska Medical Center have given a Nebraska woman reason to hope.   Kathryn Stull, 55, of Gothenburg, Neb., is a self-confessed chatterbox. So when she stopped talking, her family knew something was wrong.   \u201cI simply didn\u2019t have the energy to hold a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":79,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-47896","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","department-press-release"],"yoast_head":"\nMechanical Device Gives Heart a Rest And Patient Renewed Energy<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Using a 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