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Huntington Hospital has recently become the first community-based hospital in the greater Los Angeles area to use FlowTriever® for the treatment of pulmonary embolism. The FlowTriever® is the first mechanical thrombectomy device FDA-indicated and purpose-built for the treatment of pulmonary embolism, removing large clots from big vessels such as the pulmonary arteries without the need for thrombolytic drugs and consequent ICU stay.
A pulmonary embolism is caused when blood clots break free in the deep veins of the body and travel through the venous system to become lodged in the pulmonary arteries. The blockage of blood flow results in right heart strain as the right ventricle is unable to push blood past the clot. In severe cases, right heart failure may occur leading to a fatal event.
Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is the leading cause of preventable hospital deaths1. Acute pulmonary embolism causes 100,000 to 180,000 deaths per year, is the third leading cause of cardiovascular death only after a heart attack and stroke2,3. Symptoms include difficulty breathing, increased heartbeat, coughing up blood, and very low blood pressure or fainting.
Anticoagulation or blood thinner is the most common treatment for pulmonary embolism. However, anticoagulation only prevents new clots from forming and will not actively breakdown existing clots. Intervention with thrombolytics (tPA) or “clot-busting” drugs help to dissolve clots for patients with intermediate-risk or high-risk pulmonary embolism. Conversely, this treatment is associated with a higher risk of major and fatal bleeding and requires an ICU stay4.
The FlowTriever® procedure is typically a one-hour, single-session procedure, performed under conscious sedation. The device’s mechanism of action is to disrupt and aspirate clot using nitinol mesh disks and large lumen aspiration Triever® catheters to rapidly remove the clot and restore blood flow.
“Inari Medical FlowTriever is an important new treatment option for intermediate to high-risk pulmonary embolism. Huntington’s patients now have a safer, less invasive option for the treatment of pulmonary embolism that can immediately relieve their symptoms and improve their vital signs,” said Nikhil Daga, MD, interventional cardiology. “Because of its low bleeding risk, immediate symptom improvement, and faster patient recovery, FlowTriever represents a new dawn in the treatment of intermediate-risk and high-risk pulmonary embolism. This is a disease of the right heart, and we are proud to be among the first interventional cardiologists in the Western U.S. to offer FlowTriever.”
Offering a full spectrum of cardiology services – including screening and diagnostic tests, advanced medical and surgical treatments, and cardiac rehabilitation and education programs – our Huntington Hospital Heart and Vascular Center provides superior care. Huntington performs 2,000 catheterizations and electrophysiology procedures, and 42,000 non-invasive cardiac diagnostic procedures each year.
As part of our constant effort to speed and strengthen care for heart patients, we are gearing up to open a new state-of-the-art heart and vascular center in late summer. Located directly above our Nan and Howard Schow Emergency & Trauma Center, the new Helen and Will Webster Heart & Vascular Center will reduce time to treatment for cardiac patients and allow us to increase the number of patients we treat by 30 percent, further healing hearts and saving lives.
If you have a cardiac condition such as a pulmonary embolism, find a cardiologist at Huntington Hospital and learn if the Inari Medical FlowTriever is the best option for your needs.