Vascular Surgeon Adam Sagarwala, DO, (far right) along with Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus’ Surgical Team implants its first FDA approved heart failure device to use neuromodulation – the power of the brain and nervous system – to improve the symptoms of patients with systolic heart failure.
Lakewood, NJ – Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus (MMCSC) has introduced a new therapy for heart failure patients who are not responding to treatment with medication alone.
The Barostim implant, an innovative device that uses the body's own reflexes to improve cardiovascular function, regulates blood flow in people with heart failure. It is the world’s first FDA-approved heart failure device to use neuromodulation – the power of the brain and nervous system – to improve the symptoms of patients with systolic heart failure.
MMCSC vascular surgeon Adam Sagarwala, DO, recently implanted the device in a patient with a history of heart failure. Unlike other heart failure device therapies, the Barostim implant contains no hardware in the heart or vasculature and works by electrically stimulating baroreceptors – natural sensors located in the wall of the carotid artery – that tell the nervous system how to regulate heart, kidney and vascular function. These effects reduce the heart’s workload and help it pump more efficiently, helping to restore balance to the autonomic nervous system and improve the symptoms of heart failure.
“The implant, along with heart failure medications improves the quality of life for our patients and helps them return to their daily activities, said Victor Almeida, D.O., MMCSC’s Chief Medical. “Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus, along with RWJBarnabas Health’s Heart and Vascular program, offers the most complete network of easily accessible hospitals for all your cardiac needs. Our specialists are at the forefront of innovation in cardiology, interventional cardiology, cardiac surgery, vascular surgery, coronary artery and valvular diseases.”
Heart failure is a chronic, progressive condition in which the heart muscle is unable to pump enough blood to meet the body’s needs for blood and oxygen. Essentially, the heart can’t keep up with its workload.
People with heart failure often experience shortness of breath, fatigue, swelling in lower extremities, weakness, and the reduced ability to perform physical activity. In the US, heart failure is estimated to affect 6.9 million adults and is expected to increase by 24% to nearly 8.5 million by 2030. Overall, heart failure is associated with a four-fold increased risk of death and a six to nine times increased risk of sudden cardiac death.
To learn more about Barostim therapy or the comprehensive heart and vascular services available through RJWBarnabas Health, visit rwjbh.org/heart.