Heart Failure Research

Our Heart Failure Research Program is located at the Washington Heart and Vascular Institute at MedStar Washington Hospital Center. Our investigators belong to an integrated heart failure program that offers treatment for all forms of heart failure, no matter how severe, using medical therapy, advanced technological devices, thorough evaluation, surgery, ventricular assisted devices, and other treatment options. Clinically, the heart failure program physicians maximize and tailor medical therapy, to ensure that patients get the most out of the prescribed medical regimen. We integrate an aggressive medical regimen with the most advanced devices to support heart function. Our investigators perform research in the areas of: investigational therapy for heart failure, mechanical assist devices, new novel drugs, stem cell therapy, gene therapy, and the molecular basis of remodeling in heart failure.

Clinical trials we participate in include:

• A trial of ultra filtration in patients with fluid build-up not responsive to diuretics.
• A trial for hypertension drug Tekturna to study its role in CHF patients.
• A trial studying the new third generation left ventricular assist device.
• A trial giving patients an option of left ventricular assist device if not eligible for heart transplant.