Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital
 

Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital One of Seven in Country To Have New Heart Failure Device

Tuesday, July 11, 2006

New Brunswick, NJ - Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital is one of seven hospitals in the United States and the only hospital in New Jersey selected to participate in a study of new, minimally-invasive technology used to assist the pumping function of weakened or failing hearts.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the technology, known as IMPELLA 5.0, for use in this country on June 28 and clinical trials are to begin immediately.

The IMPELLA 5.0 devices, made by ABIOMED, are already available in Europe and have been successfully used there to treat more than 250 patients in need of cardiac support after such events as postcardiotomy cardiogenic shock and myocarditis.

The U.S. study will include postcardiotomy patients who have been taken off of heart-lung machines yet whose hearts still need support.

The hospitals selected to participate in the study include some of the nation's premier heart centers, including Massachusetts General Hospital, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital and Texas Heart Institute.

Mark Anderson, MDThe IMPELLA 5.0 represents a new generation of smaller ventricular assist device (VAD) technology. This micro-VAD technology is delivered by catheters that can be introduced through an artery and into the heart with minimally-invasive techniques.

Mark Anderson, MD, chief of cardiac surgery at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital and associate professor of surgery at UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, will be principal investigator of the study at RWJUH.

ABIOMED, a leading developer and manufacturer of medical products that assist the pumping function of failing hearts, recently selected RWJUH as a "Center of Excellence" for its cardiac program. As a Center of Excellence, RWJUH helps set standards for physician training on ABIOMED's ventricular assist devices and shares best practices related to VAD implantation and patient care.

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About Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital

Selected as one of four hospitals nationwide to offer the world's first self-contained implantable artificial heart, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (www.rwjuh.edu) is a 600-bed academic medical center and the principal hospital of UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick, NJ. Robert Wood Johnson is an innovative leader in advancing state-of-the-art care in medicine. Its Centers of Excellence include cardiovascular care from minimally invasive heart surgery to transplantation, cancer care, and women's and children's care including The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children's Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (www.bmsch.org). The hospital is also a Level 1 Trauma Center and serves as a national resource in its ground-breaking approaches to emergency preparedness.

The hospital has earned significant national recognition for clinical quality and patient safety. Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital is ranked among the top 50 hospitals in the nation for both heart and heart surgery and respiratory disorders, according to U.S.News & World Report's 2008 ranking of "America's Best Hospitals." The American College of Surgeons' Commission on Cancer has rated Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital among the nation's best comprehensive cancer centers. The Leapfrog Group rated Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital as one of the 50 exceptional U.S. hospitals, as published in Consumers Digest magazine. Harvard University researchers, in a study commissioned by The Commonwealth Fund, identified Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital as one of the top 10 hospitals in the nation for clinical quality. Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital is also a recipient of the prestigious Magnet Award for Nursing Excellence for more than 10 consecutive years.

Attention members of the media: For more information on this release, please contact the Department of Public Relations (732) 937-8521.


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