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Hypertension and Stroke in Patients with Left Ventricular Assist Devices (LVADs)

  • Blood Pressure Monitoring and Management (J Cockcroft, Section Editor)
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Abstract

Stroke is one of the most dreaded complications of left ventricular assist device therapy in patients with end-stage congestive heart failure. There is strong evidence linking anticoagulation and infection with ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes, though recent data has emerged regarding the importance of elevated blood pressure. In the recently completed Heartware Ventricular Assist Device studies, a mean arterial pressure greater than 90 mmHg was associated with greater stroke risk, particularly the hemorrhagic subtype. In this review, we discuss recent evidence regarding deleterious effects of uncontrolled hypertension in patients with left ventricular devices, and propose measurement and management strategies.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurology, Division of Stroke and Cerebrovascular Diseases, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

    Joshua Z. Willey

  2. Department of Neurology, Division of Neurology Clinical Outcomes Research and Population Science, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

    Amelia K. Boehme

  3. Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

    Francesco Castagna, Melana Yuzefpolskaya, A. Reshad Garan, Veli Topkara & Paolo C. Colombo

Authors
  1. Joshua Z. Willey
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  2. Amelia K. Boehme
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  3. Francesco Castagna
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  4. Melana Yuzefpolskaya
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  5. A. Reshad Garan
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  6. Veli Topkara
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  7. Paolo C. Colombo
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Joshua Z. Willey.

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Conflict of Interest

Dr. Willey is a consultant for Heartware and is on the Clinical Endpoint Committee for Reliant Heart. Drs. Boehme, Castagna, Yuzefpolskaya, Garan, Topkara, and Colombo declare no conflicts of interest.

Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent

This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Blood Pressure Monitoring and Management

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Willey, J.Z., Boehme, A.K., Castagna, F. et al. Hypertension and Stroke in Patients with Left Ventricular Assist Devices (LVADs). Curr Hypertens Rep 18, 12 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11906-015-0618-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11906-015-0618-1

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