Abstract 17240: Ventricular Unloading and Improved Oxygen Delivery With LVAD Support Correlates With an Increase in Angiogenesis and TIE-1 Expression

Background: Ventricular unloading with the use of a left ventricular device (LVAD) is used for patients with advanced heart failure. The use of LVAD has been reported to lead to myocardial recovery in some patients, indicating that some degree of cardiomyocyte functional recovery and/or regeneration can be induced by decreasing the external load and improving oxygen delivery. This study is aimed to determine the cellular response of failing human hearts to mechanical unloading and its relationship to angiogenesis. Methods: Pre- and post-LVAD heart tissue samples were collected from 13 patients at the time of VAD implant and heart transplantation. Six patients had ischemic cardiomyopathy and seven patients had nonischemic cardiomyopathy. All had no histologic evidence of active myocarditis. The average duration of LVAD support was 10 months. Hemodynamic data and Echo measurements before LVAD implant were compared to measurements pre- explant. H&E and CD31 immunostaining was perfored. The capillary density ...