Adverse neurologic events in patients bridged with long-term mechanical circulatory support: A device-specific comparative analysis.

Background: Neurologic complications are among the principal causes of morbidity and mortality after continuous-flow left ventricular assist device (CF-LVAD) implantation. The aim of this study was to describe a focused "real-world" multicenter comparison of neurologic outcomes between HeartMate II (HMII) and HeartWare HVAD CF-LVAD recipients.

Methods: Between March 2009 and October 2014, 497 patients underwent primary CF-LVAD implantation as a bridge to transplantation at centers included in the Mechanical Circulatory Support Research Network; 314 patients (63%) received HMII, and 183 patients (37%) received HVAD.

Predictors of death and transplant in patients with a mechanical circulatory support device: a multi-institutional study.

Background: INTERMACS is a registry of FDA-approved durable mechanical circulatory support (MCS) devices used for the strategies of destination therapy (DT) and bridge to transplantation (BTT) or recovery. This study identifies predictors for death and transplantation based on initial results from INTERMACS.

Methods: From June 23, 2006 to December 31, 2007, 420 patients from 75 institutions were prospectively entered into the INTERMACS database in which pre-implant data, indication for MCS device use, adverse events, demographics, hemodynamics, laboratory values and outcomes were recorded.