Remission From Stage D Heart Failure

The encouraging results from the LVAD based recovery series suggest that the significant hemodynamic unloading provided by the Mechanical Circulatory Support (MCS) in conjunction with aggressive pharmacological treatment may induce a profound reverse structural remodeling and in turn result in a curative alternative to a specific patient population with severe heart failure. The active identification and characterization of the patients with a high potential for full cardiac function recovery is of paramount importance. The development of a standard and simplified recovery protocol would ultimately lead to a larger bridge to recovery patient population. The primary objective of this study is to determine the proportion of subjects who have sufficient improvement in ventricular function (remission from heart failure) after undergoing a standardized LVAD plus pharmacologic recovery treatment and testing protocol to allow removal of the LVAD within 18 months. The secondary objectives of this study are twofold, first to determine the durability of sustained remission from HF following LVAD explantation at 12 months and up to 3 years and second to determine the predictors of recovery.