Inhaled Milrinone Use in Patients Receiving HeartMate II LVAD: A Pilot Study

Inclusion Criteria

• •1. For BTT candidates:
• •* Must be an approved candidate for heart transplantation according to institutional policy
• •2. For DT candidates:
• •* Patients with New York Heart Association (NYHA) class IV symptoms that have failed to respond to maximal medical therapy including beta blocker and angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors if tolerated for at least 45 of 60 days, OR dependence on continuous inotropic therapy for 14 days OR dependence on intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) for 7 days
• •* Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) \< 25%
• •* Patients with functional limitations on cardiopulmonary stress testing with a peak oxygen consumption of ≤ 14 ml/kg/min unless balloon pump or inotrope dependent or physically unable to perform the test.
• •* Patients not deemed to be a heart transplant candidate after evaluation
• •* Must have mean PAP \> 25 mmHg by pulmonary catheter indices pre-operatively (within 72 hrs) and/or a PVR \> 3 Woods units (WU).
• •* Age ≥ 19 years old (in the state of Nebraska, an individual must be ≥ 19 years old to legally provide consent as compared to age ≥ 18 in most other states)
• •* Signed informed consent