Hope for failing hearts

Sudden cardiac arrest occurs six to nine times more often in people with heart failure than in those without the disease, according to the American Heart Association. To find ways to cut that risk, Advocate Christ Medical Center participated in the groundbreaking Sudden Cardiac Death in Heart Failure Trial, a five-year international study of 2,500 people with heart failure.

In the study, patients were treated with medications or medications and a defibrillator, a pacemaker that regulates erratic heartbeats. “Doctors typically don’t implant a defibrillator until a patient is diagnosed with heart disease or an irregular heartbeat,” says cardiologist Marc Silver, M.D., director of the Heart Failure Institute at Christ Medical Center. “However, the study revealed that people who have moderate heart failure and receive a defibrillator as a preventive measure may experience a reduced risk for sudden cardiac death. They’ll live longer, healthier lives.”

Adding to its leadership in heart failure, Christ Medical Center recently opened a new electrophysiology lab, where defibrillators are implanted using state-of-the-art equipment.