“HVAD Usage and Outcomes in the Current Pediatric Ventricular Assist Device Field: An Advanced Cardiac Therapies Improving Outcomes Network Analysis” describes clinical outcomes in fifty pediatric patients implanted with the HVAD™ System at ACTION centers between April 2018-April 2020. The article shows excellent HVAD outcomes at ACTION centers and was published in ASAIO Journal on February 10, 2021.
Important Findings:
- Mechanical ventilation was used pre-HVAD in 26%
- ECMO was used pre-HVAD in 12%
- Median time on VAD was 71 days
- 3 deaths were recorded, all of whom had CHD (p = 0.001)
- Mechanical ventilation or ECMO were not associated with death (p > 0.29).
- Major bleeding and infection, the most frequent adverse events, were occurred in 14%
Our key takeaway? At one year, survival was 96% and occurrence of stroke was only 4%. ACTION’s first quality improvement project focused on decreasing the risk of stroke in pediatric VAD patients, and we continue to see better outcomes with increasing collaboration between patients, families, doctors, nurses, researchers, and industry.
Special shout out to the coauthors of this important article:
- Scott Auerbach, Children’s Hospital of Colorado
- Kathleen Simpson, St. Louis Children’s Hospital
CITATION
Auerbach SR, Simpson KE; Action Learning Network Investigators. HVAD Usage and Outcomes in the Current Pediatric Ventricular Assist Device Field: An Advanced Cardiac Therapies Improving Outcomes Network Analysis. ASAIO J. 2021 Feb 10. doi: 10.1097/MAT.0000000000001373. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 33587465.
