ISHLT has developed new practice guidelines for the use of mechanical circulatory support devices
WEDNESDAY, Jan. 23 (HealthDay News) -- The International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation has developed practice guidelines on the use of mechanical circulatory support (MCS) devices in the treatment of patients with advanced heart failure; the guidelines have been published in the February issue of The Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation.
Noting that the field of MCS has progressed considerably in the last 15 years, David Feldman, M.D., Ph.D., from the Minneapolis Heart Institute, together with other writers and reviewers, on behalf of the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation, has developed practice guidelines for physicians who treat patients with advanced heart failure using MCS devices. The guidelines are mainly based on level C evidence or consensus agreement.
Recommendations have been issued from the work of five Task Force groups in distinct areas. These recommendations focus on patient selection for permanent pump implantation (referral and evaluation of patients and risk); patient optimization before implantation of the device (management of risk factors and informed consent); intraoperative considerations and immediate postoperative care in the setting of the intensive care unit (anesthesia and surgical technique, including implantation and explantation); postoperative patient care management; and lastly, long-term outpatient care based on a multidisciplinary approach.
"We hope that these guidelines will provide an impetus for organized dissemination of best practices from various centers with excellent outcomes into the literature to further the field of MCS," the authors conclude.
Several contributing writers and reviewers disclosed financial ties to the medical device and pharmaceutical industries.
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