Heart Failure

Put your heart back into life

The importance of managing heart failure

Heart failure. It’s one of the fastest growing health problems in the country, with people of all ages experiencing its life-altering effects. But, with specialized management, people with heart failure often experience a higher quality of life and delay some of its debilitating effects. Many may have the progression of the condition slowed or stopped, may avoid hospitalization and may ultimately improve life expectancy.

The term "congestive heart failure" refers to a chronic form of heart disease in which the heart's pumping capacity and efficiency are reduced. Patients with congestive heart failure may experience fatigue, shortness of breath, fluid accumulation, abnormal heart rhythms, and impairments in their quality of life.

From early diagnosis through advanced stages, people in all classes of heart failure may improve their daily lives and clinical condition by comprehensive medical management as well as education and lifestyle modifications.

Heart failure diagnosis and management

At the Heart Failure Center at Minneapolis Heart Institute, patients benefit from a continuum of care that ranges from diagnostics to medications to surgical interventions to heart transplantation. This comprehensive approach integrates both traditional treatment options and those on the forefront of technology.

The Minneapolis Heart Institute, in conjunction with Abbott Northwestern Hospital, established a Cardiothoracic Transplantation and Mechanical Devices Program in October 1985. Procedures available at this clinic include human heart and heart-lung transplantation, as well as FDA-approved mechanical devices. These devices are used either as a bridge to transplant or to allow the heart to regain proper functioning for patients who could not benefit from more traditional medical and surgical treatment.

Understanding that the impact of heart failure on a person and on a family has implications even beyond the physical, the Heart Failure Center places importance on education and support including sponsorship of one of the only heart failure support groups in the state.

The future of heart failure

The Heart Failure Center at Minneapolis Heart Institute is one of only a few programs dedicated to the care of people with heart failure. As part of that commitment, the Heart Failure Center participates in clinical research trials. Such research is essential to advancing the diagnosis and treatment of heart failure.

As a research location, the Heart Failure Center team has direct and rapid access to clinical breakthroughs and advancements. This information means our patients are among the first to benefit from the latest research.

A comprehensive approach to heart failure

The Heart Failure Center at Minneapolis Heart Institute brings together a team who specializes in heart failure and understands how to manage it. The team works closely with each patient, the patient’s primary care physician and the patient’s family. Such an integrated and individualized approach helps patients effectively and positively live with heart failure.

The Heart Failure Clinic is an active participant in clinical trials designed to evaluate new therapies for the treatment of congestive heart failure. These trials may involve new drugs, new lifestyle modifications, new ways of influencing the electrical pathways that activate the heart, or new surgical procedures.

The Heart Failure Center team includes:

• Cardiologists specializing in heart failure direct the patient’s care and management. These specialists use the latest in diagnostic tests, therapeutic approaches and surgical therapies for the treatment of heart failure.
• Certified Nurse Practitioners specializing in heart failure work closely with patients, families and primary care physicians to coordinate care plans and treatment options. cardiologists and certified nurse practitioners specialized in heart failure, dieticians, exercise physiologists, nurses, social workers and support staff.
• Cardiovascular surgeons offer the very latest surgical procedures, including valve repair, coronary bypass, ventricular assist devices, and heart transplantation
• Multidisciplinary Team including cardiac transplant coordinators, exercise physiologists, nurses, dieticians, social workers and support staff.

If you or someone you love has heart failure, talk to your doctor about the Heart Failure Center at Minneapolis Heart Institute. Or call 612-863-3900 for more information.