Center for Heart Failure

What is heart failure? 

More than five million Americans are living with heart failure—the inability of the heart to provide adequate blood supply and oxygen to the body. The goal of the highly skilled team of cardiologists and cardiac surgeons at the Center for Heart Failure is to provide progressive strategies to diagnose, treat and stabilize your heart failure, while improving your overall quality of life.

The clinical team at the Center for Heart Failure works with referring physicians to give patients with heart failure the best outcomes possible—even those patients with unique cases. 

Symptoms of heart failure can be difficult to identify but common symptoms include difficulty breathing, fatigue and—in more severe cases—congestion in the lungs and swelling of the legs and feet.

There is a greater risk of developing heart failure for individuals with a history of:

  • Congenital heart defects
  • Coronary artery disease
  • Diabetes
  • Heart attack
  • Heart rhythm disorders
  • Heart valve disease
  • High blood pressure
  • Lung disease

Heart failure is a debilitating disease requiring comprehensive management, including carefully chosen medications, prudent surgical intervention and appropriate cardiac rehabilitation. If left unchecked, heart failure can lead to the failure of other vital organs. 

Meet the Teams

Our goal at the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute is to achieve superior results for all of our patients and to help them return to normal activities while improving their overall quality of life.

Conditions

Treatments

Heart Failure Clinical Trials

Preserve Heart Study The purpose of this study is to evaluate if Non-Ischemic Heart Preservation (NIHP) of extended criteria donor hearts using the XVIVO Heart Preservation System (XHPS) is a safe and effective way to preserve and transport hearts for transplantation. This is a prospective, multicenter, non-randomized, single arm, open label study in subjects requiring a Heart Transplant. Study donor hearts meeting extended criteria are preserved via Non-Ischemic Heart Preservation (NIHP) using the XVIVO Heart Preservation System (XHPS).
Principal Investigator: Benjamin Bryner, MD 

MAGNITUDE This phase 3 study aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of NTLA-2001 in participants with Transthyretin Amyloidosis with Cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM). NTLA-2001, an investigational CRISPR/Cas9 based genome editing therapy, is intended to edit TTR in hepatocytes so the gene stops making the TTR protein. Eligible participants will be randomized in a 2:1 ratio to receive a single infusion of NTLA-2001 or placebo. All participants will be followed for a minimum of 18 months. At completion of the study, participants that received NTLA-2001 will be asked to enroll in a 15 year long-term follow-up study.
Principal Investigator: Sanjiv Shah, MD 

Locations & Contact Information
    Northwestern Memorial Hospital is ranked No. 7 by U.S. News and World Report in Heart and Vascular.

    Northwestern Memorial Hospital
    The No. 7 heart and vascular surgery program in the United States and the highest-ranked in Illinois for 17 straight years.

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    At Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, we are dedicated to delivering leading-edge, comprehensive heart and vascular care.

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    For the Cardiovascular Professional

    Learn more about physician referrals, AI technologies, CME, clinical trials and news from Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute.