N E W C L I N I C S A N D P ROG RA MS
Creating Opportunities for Collaboration To provide the best care for our patients and streamline processes for their referring physicians, Ohio State’s Heart and Vascular Center has introduced two new programs. The Heart Valve Clinic and Aortic Center of Excellence formalized collaborative relationships across specialties that were already in place. Now, referring physicians and patients have one point of contact to access all these services.
Heart Valve Clinic Paves Way for Groundbreaking Clinical Trials Early in 2011, Ohio State completed the first CoreValve aortic valve replacement as part of a groundbreaking clinical trial. Led by a principal investigator at Ohio State’s Medical Center, the CoreValve U.S. Pivotal Trial offers hope for patients with aortic valve stenosis who may not be candidates for traditional surgery. Ohio State is one of 40 centers involved in the trial nationwide. Area candidates are evaluated for CoreValve through the Richard M. Ross Heart Hospital’s Heart Valve Clinic, a relatively new program that has demonstrated doubledigit growth over the past year. Built from the ground up, the Heart Valve Clinic at the Ross Heart Hospital provides comprehensive, patient-centered care to area residents with heart valve conditions. In a single visit, patients have access to state-of-the-art care in one convenient setting. For those with advanced disease, a multidisciplinary approach yields the most effective treatment plans. Evaluation begins with an entire team of specialists. Cardiologists and cardiovascular surgeons collaborate to determine the best course of treatment for every patient, taking into account comorbidities such as PVD, COPD and renal failure. Heart failure specialists, EP specialists, interventionalists, ARNPs and imaging experts are available around the clock, providing supportive care and consultation when needed. The experts at Ohio State’s Heart Valve clinic provide a wide range of services, including catheter-based, minimally invasive, hybrid, robotic and conventional procedures as well as surgical and nonsurgical interventions for adults with congenital heart disease. A noninvasive diagnostic lab provides timely access to echocardiography and complementary diagnostics such as cardiac CT and cardiac MRI. Specialists at the clinic are always available for phone consultations to review test results, discuss concerns or evaluate whether a patient may be a candidate for a specific procedure. The Heart Valve Clinic allows for quick access to the most comprehensive care in the region.
28