MetroHealth Dialogue
Cutting-edge treatments in Heart & Vascular Center
MetroHealth's Heart & Vascular Center offers patients the opportunity to take advantage of cutting-edge diagnostic techniques, medical devices and drug treatments available through approved research studies.
 "MetroHealth’s Heart & Vascular Center is on the cutting edge of what’s going on in cardiology," says David S. Rosenbaum, MD, Director of the Heart & Vascular Center and Chief of Cardiology. "Refer patients here because MetroHealth cardiologists will be directly involved and remain involved in the care of the patient — as will the referring physician — throughout the course of the clinical trial. Patients are not going to get lost in a big maze of doctors."
Dr. Rosenbaum says the Heart & Vascular Center has about 20 active clinical trials going at any given time.
"If you are having trouble treating common heart and vascular issues, we have clinical trials which can help address these issues," says Ottorino Costantini, MD, Director of the Heart & Vascular Clinical Trials Unit. “We’re here to help your patients. And we will actively engage referring physicians in our work.’’
Some of the clinical trials currently offered to patients include the following:
Symplicity
Testing an innovative catheter-based procedure for lowering very high blood pressure which is not responsive to medications. The procedure, renal denervation, involves inserting a catheter based probe into the renal artery and deactivating the renal sympathetic nerves with low-level radiofrequency energy. MetroHealth is now pre-screening patients for this pivotal Phase III study.
Inovate
Testing an innovative device-based therapy in patients experiencing moderate heart failure. The trial involves stimulation of the vagus nerve with the implanted CardioFit system, which includes a stimulator and two leads. The nerve stimulation is being done to improve cardiac function by reducing left ventricular volumes, increasing ejection fraction and improving heart failure functional classification. Vagal nerve stimulation to treat congestive heart failure is an investigational treatment in the U.S. but is approved in Europe.
PROMISE
Testing whether a heart CT scan might better diagnose coronary artery disease compared to the standard cardiac stress tests- including electrocardiogram, stress echocardiogram or stress nuclear test - in patients who are experiencing mild symptoms that are possibly cardiac related.
MetroHealth physicians and scientists are partnering with Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, University Hospitals and the Cleveland Clinic through the NIH-supported Clinical and Translational Science Collaborative (CTSC).
The CTSC is the Cleveland-based part of a national consortium of research institutions working together to facilitate and transform scientific study relating to human health. The CTSC provides resources to help design research studies and research tools, facilitates clinical-investigator interfaces and community outreach, education and tracking of activities.
Physicians interested in finding out more about certain clinical trials or knowing more about heart and vascular clinical research, call 216-778-7373.
Call the Physician Referral Service:
216-957-3222 or toll-free 1-866-260-5376 |
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