September 22, 2006

Regions heart surgeons among first in the nation to use new compact circulatory support system
September 22, 2006

St. Paul, Minn., – Heart surgeons at Regions Hospital are among the first in the nation to use an innovative system for supporting a patients circulatory and respiratory functions while the patient is undergoing surgery on an arrested - or stopped - heart.

Approximately 75 percent of the 350,000 coronary bypass grafting operations that take place in the United States each year are performed on a stopped heart utilizing a heart-lung machine to support the patient while the heart is stopped. In clinical trials, the new Medtronic bypass system being used at Regions decreased blood product utilization by 27 percent and lowered overall transfusion rate by 37 percent in patients who were anemic (reduced oxygen in their blood) when they came into the operating room.

"This system provides several benefits to our patients including a decreased likelihood of infection, fewer respiratory problems, less time on the ventilator, less risk of post-operative stroke and a faster recovery time," said Dr. Goya Raikar, who specializes in adult cardiac, thoracic and vascular surgery at Regions.

When using the Medtronic Resting Heart System, the patient's blood is less diluted and exposure to air and other foreign surfaces is minimized. Recent studies have suggested that employing strategies for fluid management using cardiopulmonary circuits with low-priming volumes results in fewer post-surgical complications resulting in reduced mortality.

Regions Hospital is a Level I Trauma Center and teaching hospital serving Minnesota and western Wisconsin for more than 130 years. Regions is a private, non-profit hospital providing outstanding care in women's health, heart, cancer, surgery, orthopaedics, neuroscience, burn, emergency care and more. Regions is part of the HealthPartners family of care. Additional information is available at regionshospital.com.