Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in America. During a heart attack or during sudden cardiac arrest, time is vital. The more time that passes without therapy, the more heart muscle is permanently lost while at the same time, the risk of morbidity and mortality grows.
To help drive better treatments for cardiac episodes, the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust https://helmsleytrust.org has provided $3.3 million in grant funding to support a study at the Mayo Clinic https://www.mayoclinic.org expected to be completed by 2020. The funding will be used to explore how successfully a remote-controlled robotic-assisted heart procedure is able to perform.
Mackram F. Eleid MD, Interventional Cardiologist for Mayo Clinic’s Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, and Associate Professor of Medicine at Mayo Clinic’s College of Medicine, will serve as the Primary Investigator for the multi-phase study.
The most effective type of therapy for many types of cardiac episodes is primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI) but there is currently a global shortage of PCI-capable operators and facilities.
“The need for remote interventions is becoming increasingly important as our knowledge in cardiovascular medicine increases,” reports Amir Lerman M.D, Director, of the Mayo Clinic Cardiovascular Research Center.
Remote PCI, or telestenting may enable physicians to conduct procedures from virtually any location. This may open opportunities for the rural and underserved populations to receive care from virtually any location by eliminating workforce barriers.
Mayo Clinic will use equipment developed by Corindus Vascular Robotics Inc. www.corindus.com, which is a developer of precision vascular robotics. The company will work with Mayo Clinic in a preclinical study on the use of telestenting. Corindus Vascular Roberts and their technology called “CorPath GRX Systems is currently cleared for robotic assisted PCI in the Cardiac Cath lab.