cardiac care advances at new jersey’s top hospitals and ...€¦ · cardiac care advances at new...

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THROUGH SCREENING AND REGU-lar checkups, early diagnosis ofheart conditions and risk factors

can reduce the occurrence of heartattacks, which happen at the alarmingrate of one every 34 seconds. Usingstate-of-the-art advances in cardiac care, New Jersey’s top hospitals are saving lives and improving the quality of life for survivors and their families.COMMERCE asked the following experts to discuss the latest advances in cardiac care.

Atlantic Health SystemBy Linda D. Gillam, M.D.,Chair, CardiovascularMedicine

Morristown MedicalCenter’s Gagnon Cardiovascular Instituteis recognized by U.S. News and WorldReport as the leading cardiovascularprogram in New Jersey. It is nationallyknown for advanced treatment of valvedisease, using surgical and catheter-based approaches to care for more valvepatients than any other hospital in NewJersey. Through its large research pro-gram, Morristown offers new devices for heart valve, heart failure and rhythmdisorders. The Chanin T. Mast Centerprovides advanced compassionate carefor those with hypertrophic cardiomy-opathy, a common genetically transmit-ted heart muscle condition that is fre-quently implicated in sudden death in

athletes. Our sports cardiology programis the official healthcare provider for the New York Jets, and also cares forathletes of all ages and fitness levels.Cardio-oncology uses new imagingapproaches to ensure early detectionand management of heart damage fromcancer treatment. The Cardiac RhythmProgram performs more than 2,000 pro-cedures each year, including curativeablations. The Women’s Heart Programprovides gender-optimized care, recog-nizing that men and women are notalways alike when it comes to heart disease. These programs complementthose for coronary artery disease andheart failure with the result that allpatients with heart disease receive the best possible care at Morristown.

Capital Health By Kristopher F. Young,D.O., FACOI, FACC, Medical Director, Cardiac RehabilitationCenter, Cardiologist,

Heart Care Specialists

At Capital Health, delivering the high-est quality cardiac care through everystage of the patient experience requiresa team effort. For emergencies, CapitalHealth Medical Center-Hopewell wasthe first hospital in the Mercer/Bucks/Burlington County area to earn fullaccreditation with PCI as a Chest PainCenter from the Society of Cardio-

vascular Patient Care. Our dedicatedteam delivers a faster triage and evalua-tion process to get testing done fasterand determine if interventions are need-ed. Serious cases go directly to the car-diac catheterization lab, where our teamcan place a stent to open restrictedblood flow. Our team can also look forsigns of blockages or other issues anddetermine the best course of action toprevent future issues. For those recover-ing from heart surgery or other inter-ventions, our Cardiac RehabilitationCenter works with referring physiciansto help patients with a history of heart-related illness. Our personalized exer-cise, nutritional and risk-factor manage-ment counseling, as well as psychologi-cal support, help patients make healthi-er lifestyle choices and reduce the risk offuture cardiac events. Our comprehen-sive cardiology services—from diagnosisto treatment and recovery to rehabilita-tion—are offered under one roof atCapital Health Medical Center-Hopewell.

Englewood Hospital and Medical CenterBy Samuel Suede, M.D.,Chief of Cardiology

We offer expertise acrossthe full spectrum of cardiovascular dis-ease, which includes coronary artery dis-ease, valvular heart disease, arrhythmias,congestive heart failure and aorticaneurysm treatment. Today, we’re able

COMPILED BY MILES Z. EPSTEINEDITOR, COMMERCE

By addressing medical conditions that affect the human heart, doctors and researchers are saving lives.

Cardiac Care Advancesat New Jersey’s Top Hospitals andMedical Centers

STATE-OF-THE-ART CARDIAC CARE

to treat our elderly population much more effectively. In the past, an elderly and frail patient with severalchronic diseases would be turned downfor high-risk heart surgery, often with no alternative treatment options. Now we can offer those patientscatheter-based approaches for coronarydisease or valvular disease that is muchsafer than open heart surgery and oftenequally effective. One example is Trans-catheter Aortic Valve Replacement(TAVR), a catheter-based approach to treat severe aortic stenosis, wherethere’s a narrowing of the aortic valveopening. With this minimally invasiveapproach, patients typically recovermore quickly and can return to normal

activities much sooner. We also usecatheter-based devices and minimallyinvasive techniques to treat fullyblocked coronary arteries called chronic total occulsions. This can be an effective alternative to open heartsurgery. In addition, we use the recentlyFDA-approved Watchman device forpatients with atrial fibrillation wherethe upper chambers of the heart losenormal rhythm. This device is forpatients who can’t take blood-clottingdrugs long-term. We’re also performingmany more hybrid procedures using thecombined expertise of heart and vascu-lar specialists to address cardiovascularproblems. We’re also using the newAbsorb dissolvable heart stent to treatcertain types of arterial blockages.Because these stents dissolve over time,additional intervention may be easier to offer in the future and certain block-age risks associated with metallic stentsmay be reduced.

Hackensack Meridian Health,HackensackUMCBy Joseph E. Parrillo, M.D.,Chairman, Heart andVascular Hospital

Cardiovascular disease is a problem of extraordinary magnitude and is themost common cause of death in theUnited States. New technologies in useat the Heart and Vascular Hospital atHackensackUMC are revolutionizing our ability to treat heart disease andfurther reduce morbidity. One revolu-tionary technique is called TranscatheterAortic Valve Replacement (TAVR), whichis used to replace the aortic valve inpatients who are not well enough toundergo traditional open heart surgery.HackensackUMC was the first hospital in New Jersey approved for bothtransapical TAVR (through a small inci-sion in the chest) and trans-femoralTAVR (through a small incision in theleg), enabling more patients to be treat-ed. Another ground-breaking technolo-gy is the Left Atrial Appendage OccluderDevice (LAAOD) for patients who sufferfrom atrial fibrillation, and are likely todevelop small blood clots in their atrialheart chamber. These blood clots can

travel to the brain causing a stroke.Using a catheter based approach, asmall parachute-like device can be per-manently implanted into the left atrialappendage, occluding the appendageover several months. Patients with thisdevice in place are protected from clotsand stroke, and no longer need to useanticoagulants. One of the major chal-lenges is treatment of a patient withheart failure who is no longer respond-ing to our conventional medications.Ventricular Assist Devices (VADs),mechanical heart support devices, havenow been perfected so they are highlyeffective short- and long-term heartassists for patients with severe heart failure. VADs can be implanted toimprove both the quality of life andlong-term survival. These devices arelife-saving in appropriate heart failure patients.

Hackensack Meridian Health,Jersey Shore UniversityMedical Center By Richard Neibart, M.D.,Medical Director, MeridianCardioVascular Network,

Chief of Cardiac Surgery

At Jersey Shore University MedicalCenter, part of Hackensack MeridianHealth, transcatheter aortic valvereplacement (TAVR) is the latest, mini-mally invasive procedure for patientswith critical aortic stenosis. As one ofthe leading cardiac centers in the state,Jersey Shore’s program has given newhope to patients who are consideredhigh-risk for conventional open-heartsurgery. TAVR is less invasive than con-ventional surgery. It combines minimallyinvasive techniques with the latestcatheter technologies, and is done whilethe heart remains pumping. TAVR canbe combined with coronary stenting forpatients with other complicated cardiacproblems. The TAVR procedure requiresa multidisciplinary team approach,involving both a cardiothoracic surgeonand an interventional cardiologist.Jersey Shore’s heart team provides themost complete, coordinated care toensure the best outcomes for patients.As we anticipate improvements in both



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Heart attacks occur at the alarming rate of one every 34 seconds.

the technology and the safety profile ofthe product, the medical center isexpanding its facilities and services soTAVR can be available to a greater spec-trum of patients.

Holy Name Medical Center By Angel Mulkay, M.D.,FACC, FSCAI, Director ofCardiology and the CardiacCatheterization Laboratory

Holy Name’s cardiology experts pro-vide patients with high-quality heartcare aimed at preventing, diagnosingand treating cardiovascular disease. A continuum of care, including cardiacrehabilitation, assists patients in recov-ery and helps them improve their quali-

ty of life. Expertise is available in inter-ventional cardiology; electrophysiologytreatment; peripheral and endovascularinterventions for peripheral arterial dis-ease; and non-invasive diagnostic test-ing, including EKGs, echocardiograms,SPECT imaging, 64-slice CT angiographyand transesophageal echocardiograms.Interventional cardiology, utilizingcatheter-based procedures, is an area ofcardiology that is rapidly expanding dueto advances in techniques and technolo-gies. Holy Name continues to lead theway in transradial catheterization tech-niques, and is one of only several selectsites in the NY/NJ metropolitan areausing a medicated dissolving stent calledAbsorb to treat clogged coronary arter-ies. Made of a material commonly used

for dissolving sutures, Absorb stentsopen up cardiac blockages and slowlyrelease medication that limits thegrowth of scar tissue, thereby reducingthe risk of recurrent blockages. Absorbstents go one step further than tradi-tional metal stents, which remain in theartery permanently. Once Absorb hasdisintegrated, the artery can flex and its original, natural function is restored.

RWJBarnabas Health By John F. Bonamo, M.D.,M.S., FACOG, Chief MedicalOfficer, Executive VP

RWJBarnabas Health continually works to solve the problemsfacing cardiac patients through innova-tive care practices and outcome-basedsolutions. Here are a few of the areas of cardiovascular medicine where wecontinue to raise the bar in New Jersey.Valve Disease—We have the leadingexperts in open-heart valve surgery, minimally invasive valve surgery andtranscatheter valve replacement. With cross-state coverage, we are bring-ing to our communities the most talent-ed surgeons and procedural techniques.Heart Transplantation—Our system hasthe only certified heart transplantationhospitals in New Jersey and combine to be a top-five system in the country.Heart Failure—We remain one of thefirst and only health systems in NewJersey to provide real-time hemodynam-ic monitoring for heart failure patients.Cardiac Intervention—We are now offer-ing the highest level of interventionalcare, Protected PCI with the Impella®

device, to patients who are too sick fortraditional catheterizations or surgeryprocedures. Electrophysiology—We areproud to announce the addition of theWatchman device for those patientswhose anticoagulation complicationspreviously prevented care of their heartrhythm disorders. Research and ThoughtLeadership—Whether it is our participa-tion in industry leading clinical trials orrecent publication in the NEJM, ourpatients always have access to the latesttechnology and thought leadership inthe field. Several of our ongoing trialsinclude the Thoratec HeartMate 3™ ven-





There are five millionpeople in the UnitedStates suffering fromchronic heart failure, with about 550,000 diagnosed each year.

tricular assist device trial; SJM Portico™transcatheter aortic valve trial; andEdwards PARTNERS-3 low-risk TAVR trial.

Trinitas Regional Medical Center By Fayez Shamoon, M.D.,Medical Director ofCardiovascular Services

Trinitas maintains a full-service cardiacfacility as well as facilities for the inten-sive nursing care of patients with cardiacdisease. These include a cardiac careunit, intermediate coronary care unit,cardiac catheterization lab, non-invasivecardiology services, full-service emer-gency department and cardiac rehabili-tation services. In a developmentannounced just recently, Trinitas nowoffers the Abbott Absorb stent to ourpatients. The Absorb dissolving heartstent is the first and only device of itskind—a drug-eluting coronary stent thatdissolves completely and naturally in thebody over time. Absorb treats coronary

artery disease like a metallic stent, prop-ping the diseased vessel open to restoreblood flow, but then disappears afterthe artery is healed, leaving no metalbehind to restrict natural vessel motion.Although Trinitas is the first in theregion and the fifth in the state to offerthis option, the Absorb stent has beenused worldwide, benefiting more than150,000 people with coronary artery dis-

ease. Another recent advancement in our catheterization lab is a new imag-ing modality called Optical CoherenceTomography, which uses light to visual-ize the coronary arteries. This helpsguide treatment options for blockages,and gives us another tool to assess theresult after the stent has been placed.

University HospitalBy Marc Klapholz, M.D.,MBA, FACC, Chief ofService, Dept. of Medicine,Professor/Chair, Dept. of Medicine, Rutgers

New Jersey Medical School

University Hospital offers specialexpertise in advanced multimodality cardiovascular imaging, includingadvanced echocardiography with 4Dimaging and strain; nuclear cardiology(SPECT and PET); cardiac computedtomography (CT); cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR); and vascular imaging.We recently upgraded our equipment




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and are using state-of-the-art machinesand technology. New techniques foradvanced ablation therapies includecryo radiofrequency for patients withcomplex arrhythmias (irregular heart-beats). Advanced treatments for struc-tural heart disease—including percuta-neous closure for intra-cardiac communi-cations and valvuloplasty with integrat-ed 3D angiographic CT scanning—con-

tinues to be advanced at UniversityHospital. We have started a broad, mul-tidisciplinary “Healthy Heart” programthat offers patients with heart failure apersonalized approach to treatment.This program brings physicians,Advanced Practice Nurses, social work-ers, nutritionists, patient educators,patient navigators and pharmaciststogether to develop patient-specific

treatment plans. More than 800 patientshave been enrolled with markedimprovements in outcomes and qualityof life. We are seeing advances in thetreatment of heart failure. The best wayto treat heart failure is through preven-tion. Physicians are focusing on theunderlying causes of heart failure andtreating those. Our goal is to reduce ourreadmission rate of 12 percent, which





TOOTH DECAY IS THE MOST common chronic childhood disease. It is five times more

common than asthma, and more than50 percent of children have cavities intheir primary teeth by the first grade. In fact, the National Education

Association says American students miss 51 million hours of school everyyear because of oral health problems,and students who have experiencedrecent oral health pain are four timesmore likely to have lower grade pointaverages than their counterparts who have not.

This makes the American DentalAssociation’s National Children’s DentalHealth Month program—which cele-brates its 76th year in February 2017—a vital outreach for kids who need todevelop good habits at an early age. It has been demonstrated that schedul-ing regular dental visits helps childrenget a good start on a lifetime of healthyteeth and gums.This year, the American DentalAssociation (ADA), along with the ADAFoundation, is highlighting the benefitsof drinking tap water for its February2017 National Children’s Dental Health

COMPILED BY JOHN JOSEPH PARKERCONTRIBUTING EDITOR

DENTAL HEALTH

Developing good habits at an early age and scheduling regular dental visits helps children get a good start on a lifetime

of healthy teeth and gums.


February 2017 is the 76th NationalChildren’s Dental Health Month

can be compared to 22 percent in oursurrounding areas. When treatment forthe causes of heart failure isn’t enough,we provide rapid and decisive care.

Valley Medical GroupBy Gerald Sotsky, M.D.,Chair, Cardiac Services

Valley employs a “heartteam approach” to provide

exceptional care for a variety of cardiacdiseases and disorders. In 2015, Valleyestablished a cardiac affiliation with theCleveland Clinic—the No. 1 heart hospi-tal in the country—to share best prac-tices, coordinate care and develop pro-grams to improve quality and patientsafety. Our valve team includes cardiacsurgeons, structural interventionalists,cardiac imagers and advanced practicenurses who offer state-of-the-art carefor patients with heart defects, includ-ing advanced minimally invasiveapproaches. Our cardiothoracic surgeryprogram offers a thoracic aortic

aneurysm surveillance program and top-rated coronary artery surgery, includingoff-pump coronary artery bypass sur-gery, and complex valvular surgery. TheSnyder Center for Comprehensive AtrialFibrillation evaluates and treats patientswith atrial fibrillation using a holistic,multidisciplinary approach. Our cardiacelectrophysiology program offers com-plex ablation, innovative pacemakersand remote monitoring. Valley’s inter-ventional cardiology program provides

advanced interventional techniques,including non-surgical procedures toopen narrowed coronary arteries. Forpatients with congestive heart failure,we offer a specialized program led by amultidisciplinary care team that has suc-cessfully and notably reduced the rateof hospital readmissions for heart failurepatients. Our Heart Care for Womenprogram identifies patients at risk andtreats heart disease in women using anintegrative approach. n



Month campaign with the slogan,“Choose Tap Water for a SparklingSmile.”The National Children’s Dental Health

Month program began as a one-dayevent on Feb. 3, 1941, in Cleveland,Ohio. In 1981 the ADA House ofDelegates extended it to a month-longobservance which brings together thou-

sands of dedicated dental professionals,healthcare providers and educators topromote the benefits of good oralhealth to children, their caregivers,teachers and many others.National Children’s Dental HealthMonth messages reach millions of peo-ple in communities across the countryand at numerous armed service bases.

Local observances often include poster,coloring and essay contests, health fairs,free dental screenings, museum exhibits,classroom presentations and dentaloffice tours.The American Academy of PediatricDentistry recommends that children see a dentist at least every 6 months. In some cases, medical professionals may encourage more frequent appoint-ments to prevent long-term issues likecavities. In between check-ups, parentsare encouraged to help their sons anddaughters practice excellent healthhabits. Dentists provide advice at everyappointment, but kids might not listen,and parents can’t remember every tip.In some of America’s poorest commu-nities, the need for dental outreach isquite urgent, as the National Institutesof Health report that “approximately 80 percent of tooth decay in the UnitedState is suffered by 25 percent of thecountry’s children.” n

continued from page 48DENTAL HEALTH


The National Institutes of Health reports that

“approximately 80 percent of tooth decay in the

United States is suffered by 25 percent of the country’s children.”

cardiac care advances at new jersey’s top hospitals and ...€¦ · cardiac care advances at new...

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