First experience with cardiomyoplasty in Ukraine.

We have been studying feasible surgical alternatives for treating congestive heart failure, including the use of cardiomyoplasty. In this operation, skeletal muscles are conditioned, through electrical stimulation, to provide active tension on diseased myocardium, which improves left ventricular performance and ultimately increases cardiac output. We performed cardiomyoplasty in a 37-year-old man with severe ischemic cardiomyopathy.