MUSC introduces new ‘game-changing’ procedure for heart failure patients

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) – Doctors at MUSC Health are being recognized for using a new device that is expected to improve the quality of life for patients with heart failure.

Vascular surgeon Jean Marie Ruddy, M.D., and cardiac electrophysiologist Anne Kroman, D.O., Ph.D. are both being recognized for using a minimally invasive “Barostim” device.

According to MUSC, the FDA-approved Barostim device uses electrical impulses to stimulate nerves that regulate blood pressure.

“This is what we call a ‘first-in-man study.” It’s a new way to deliver the same technology but to save the patient from an incision in the side of the neck,” said Ruddy.

MUSC Cardiologist Ryan Tedford, M.D. said that the device cannot reverse heart failure but can “improve patients’ quality of life.”

Tedford’s patient was the first to undergo the new procedure at MUSC Health and is reported to be doing well.

“There are millions of patients living with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction in the U.S. who may be able to benefit from Barostim. This new implantation method could eventually be used for most patients who may benefit from Barostim and represents a step forward in the evolution of the therapy to be even more simple to implant,” explained a spokesperson with CVRx, the company that created Barostim.

More information about the procedure can be found here.