Dizziness in the Heartmate III patient

Dizziness in the LVAD patient is often multifactorial. Titration of antihypertensive medications, fluid shifts associated with diuresis, and arrhythmias, particularly those originating in the ventricle, are factors often implicated as contributors to dizziness in these patients. Another possible explanation may lie in the enhanced HeartMate 3 mechanism that more accurately calculates low flows,1 which can lead to greater frequency of PI events, and subsequently may result in dizziness. Unfortunately, there are no reports in the literature about the frequency of dizziness as a symptom in this patient population which may in part be due to its relatively recent approval in 2018 by the FDA for all patients who are candidates for the device.

Source: Heart and Lung - April 28, 2019 Category: Intensive Care Authors: Sarah Schettle, John Stulak, Hilmi Alnsasra, Alfredo Clavell Source Type: research