Care for patients with advanced cardiac disease continues to evolve in a complex milieu of
therapeutic options, advanced technological interventions, and efforts at improving patient …

Background Studies indicate that decision making and informed consent among patients
considering left ventricular assist device (LVAD) support for advanced heart failure could be …

Objectives: A time-limited trial is an agreement between clinicians and patients or surrogate
decision makers to use medical therapies over a defined period of time to see if the patient …

Background A greater understanding of how beliefs and perceptions inform LVAD
placement refusals can help ensure that standards for informed decision making are met …

Objectives To describe the characteristics of patients who undergo withdrawal of total
artificial heart support and to explore the ethical aspects of withdrawing this life-sustaining …

Key differences exist between adult and pediatric ventricular assist device (VAD) care. For
many adult patients, VADs are commonly implanted as destination therapy, in contrast to …

Background The total artificial heart (TAH) is an implanted device approved as a modality to
stabilize patients with severe biventricular heart failure or persistent ventricular arrhythmias …

Walking onto an intensive care unit can be almost otherworldly. Nurses, gowned, gloved,
and masked, hover like anonymous overseers, busily moving from one human form to …

Background Destination therapy (DT) is the permanent implantation of a left ventricular
assist device (LVAD) in patients with end-stage, severe heart failure who are ineligible for …

It is widely believed to be permissible for a physician to discontinue any treatment upon the
request of a competent patient. Many also believe it is never permissible for a physician to …