Heart Failure Research

Physicians at the University of Chicago Hospitals are involved in numerous research studies of promising medications, devices, and diagnostic methods. Because of this, our heart failure patients often gain access to new treatments available through clinical trials--treatments not widely available at other hospitals.

One trial currently under way is testing a new permanent mechanical assist device, which offers hope to patients with severe heart failure who are not candidates for transplantation. The University of Chicago Hospitals was the first investigational site in the world to successfully implant the new device, called the CardioVad, which helps the heart pump more effectively.

Clinical trials are also under way investigating the treatment of heart failure with sophisticated pacemakers that help the heart to beat in a regular rhythm. In addition, University of Chicago Hospitals researchers have taken a special interest in cardiomyopathy research, skeletal muscle regeneration, and other methods to help reverse heart failure on a molecular basis. Other research efforts focus on new ways to improve heart function, preserve organs for transplant, and prevent transplant rejection.