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Research HistoryMMRF researchers have been at the forefront of testing and administering some of the most effective treatments in the country for coronary artery disease and heart failure. There is a long tradition of research leading to better care for patients. Clot Busters MMRF researchers were instrumental in testing "clot-busting" drugs for patients with coronary artery disease. HCMC was the first hospital in the upper midwest to use Tissue Plasminogen Activator (TPA), which breaks up blood clots, and the first in the world to use TNK TPA which is an altered, more potent form of TPA with fewer side effects. Stroke Prevention in Atrial Fibrillation Richard Asinger, M.D., cardiologist and MMRF researcher, was one of the leaders, along with David Anderson, M.D., Chief of Neurology, of the Stroke Prevention in Atrial Fibrillation (SPAF) study. Atrial fibrillation is a condition where the top of the heart doesn’t contract, causing an irregular heartbeat. Researchers knew that these patients were at greater risk for stroke. This landmark study defined the role of blood thinners and aspirin in preventing strokes in these patients. Redux and Phen-Fen Studies by HCMC cardiologist Charles Herzog, M.D., were published in recent issues of the New England Journal of Medicine. Herzog was an investigator on a study that found 23 percent of patients who took the popular diet drugs Redux and phen-fen experienced heart valve abnormalities, compared with one percent among a similar group of overweight people who did not use the drugs. Dialysis and Heart Attacks Dr. Herzog was the primary investigator of a study that demonstrated that patients on dialysis have a very poor rate of survival after suffering a heart attack. He thinks this information will help physicians evaluate current treatments of dialysis patients since the improvement seen in cardiac care for the general population is not mirrored in the dialysis patient group. Heart Failure MMRF also has a seventeen-year history of leading-edge research into the physiology and therapy for heart failure, testing many new medications for acute and chronic heart failure. "Because we have been so extensively involved in research, a patient coming to this campus has more new therapies available to them than anywhere else in this area," said Steven Goldsmith, M.D., Chief of Cardiology. "We understand the mechanisms of heart failure and the many therapies available so we can be more sophisticated about the management of this condition."
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