Frontier Lifeline Hospital Performs Vagus Nerve Stimulation Therapy for Heart Failure

Frontier lifeline Hospital (FLL) and Dr K M Cherian heart foundation has accomplished yet another landmark by performing a device therapy to modulate the autonomic nervous system to treat heart failure. The successful procedure, also termed as the 'Vagus Nerve Stimulation Therapy', was done on a 63 year old lady who was suffering from acute breathlessness by Dr. K. M. Cherian, Chairman and CEO, Frontier Lifeline Hospital along with Dr. Joy M Thomas, Senior Consultant Cardiologist and Dr. Anto Sahayaraj, Jr. Consultant, Pediatric Cardiac surgery.

Heart failure is the final common pathway in many forms of heart disease that is associated with excessive morbidity and mortality. Functioning of heart, breathing, digestion etc. comes under 'involuntary system' that is beyond one's control and are commonly referred to as the autonomous nervous system. This system further comprises of two parts - One is the sympathetic system that drives the organs positively, example - Increase the heart rate and the blood pressure or increase the rate of breathing. The second is the parasympathetic system that depresses these organs - like slowing the heart, reducing the blood pressure and the breathing. The normal functional during times of ordinary activity is a balance of these two systems.

Occasionally patients admitted in the hospitals with heart failure and acute breathless have normal heart pumping function. But in some cases, it causes a backlog of blood in the lungs when the high blood pressure and a rapid heart rate. This further attributes to an increase in the sympathetic nervous system influencing the heart and the vasculature, and result in a higher BP and heart rate leading to breathless episode.

It has been theorized that if the parasympathetic nerve in the body which controls the heart and vasculature, namely the Vagus Nerve in the neck on the right side lying near the Right Carotid artery (that supply the head and neck with oxygenated blood) is stimulated by a very weak current, the increased tone in the parasympathetic system will prevent the surges of sympathetic activity and thereby prevent the occurrence of "flash Pulmonary edema" or sudden breathless acute heart failure that these patients experience from time to time, needing hospitalization to prevent a fatal outcome. This entire procedure is thus termed as Vagus Nerve Stimulation Therapy for Heart Failure.

Speaking on the treatment, Dr. K. M. Cherian, Chairman and CEO, Frontier Lifeline Hospital and Dr K M Cherian Heart Foundation, said, "When Mrs. R was admitted at FLL with three episodes of acute breathlessness in the recent past, we did an analysis of ECG's and blood tests that indicated us that she can be recovered by performing Vagus Nerve Stimulation therapy that doesn't require any kind of drugs and has no side effects either. The whole procedure was done in less than an hour under general anesthesia and the patient was discharged on the third day. Subsequently the patient will be flowed up at intervals of 15 days, one month, three months and six monthly thereafter for two years from now. Also, it has to be noted that Mrs. R has Diabetes and also had undergone Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery at FLL during 2007. We know the high level of suffering a patient undergoes and cannot achieve satisfactory relief using drug therapies. So, we are at FLL are extremely delighted to be able to perform Vagus nerve stimulation therapy, thereby providing a further and a very promising alternative treatment for the patients hereafter."

Source : Equity Bulls

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