Patients and Caregivers Forums

My father just had an LVAD put in on October 9th. The surgery went good and he was taken off the ventilator the following day. He then began to develop extreme breathing problems and was not able to take deep enough breaths and was retaining carbon dioxide and becoming extremely confused due to this...

Did any of you get you implant done through the left side ribs?

My husband experiences involuntary shaking like he had a fever or something. He doesn’t have a fever so I’m wondering what could cause this?

Hello, my name is Chris and I have had my HeartWare LVAD for a little over a year now. Life with the device had gone mostly as well as could be expected although I have experienced one problem that is quite a nuisance and was wondering if anyone had some feedback or advice on how to tackle this...

We have Heartware battery charging station & 6 batteries, like new, only had 6 months. If interested, contact me.

I should have added that we have the new, unused shower bag, as well as the clothing and charging gear.

My husband received his Heartware lvad on Oct 1, 2020. (Stemi heart attack Aug 4, 2020) Monday, (10/5/2020), two nurses & my hubby set off out to walk a few 'laps' around the cicu wing. Having previously walked behind a different 3some on Sat & Sun, rolling his chair directly behind them in case he...

My husband received a heart transplant on September 15, 2020. He had had a Heartmate III Since October 1, 2019. We have nearly a month's worth of dressing change kits from OrthoDynamics, a wall unit, a battery charger and 4 batteries, 2 LAVD shirts and a waist band for sleeping. I would like to give...

My husband had his LVAD op October 2017 10 days later he developed bowed ischaemia and had life saving surgery again, he had bowel resection and an illeostomy. He is lucky to have survived. Now over year later he has had drive line infection, regular low magnesium and potassium also, he looses fluid...

Received my LVAD March 2, 2019, and can not walk any distance without a walker. I truly thought I would be able to function without it, but that has not been the case. I get very short of breath walking without the walker, but can walk a long way with it. Anyone have the same experience?

I got my LVAD in 2015 and haven't had any problems with it. Just over the last few days, I've been getting pains in my heart, mostly when I'm tired. In the evenings, there is a pressure in my heart that sometimes increases to short stabs of intense pain. It seems to be increasing. Does anybody else...

Hello everyone. My mother has been having LVAD for 6 years. We cannot measure his blood pressure in any way, sometimes it can be measured on the monitors in the hospital. There is a thrombus shortage in both the pump and the default. For this reason, we want to observe the blood pressure in some way...

RE: someone was worried about the elec cord disconnecting. We found an inexpensive item at the hardware store called Plug Lock that prevents accidental u plugging. The only negative is that in a fire or other emergency, you would have to unscrew one screw that holds it in place.

My significant other had LVAD implantation last year in May. Before he had the surgery his heart function was at 15% and he had prepared himself that he was going to die. His children and I talked to him about pursuing LVAD surgery and he seemed receptive. We went to Mayo and they said he would be a...

Hello Everyone! I am a product design student at the University of Cincinnati with a friend who has an LVAD. Since witnessing her experience as a young 20 year old living with an LVAD, I have been inspired to do my thesis project on trying to address some of the frustrations and pain points...

Hello everyone, my father received his LVAD approx 2 years ago. He qualified for SSI Disability and will finally be covered by Medicare next month. He is still under 65, so the prices for Supplemental and Medigap coverage are unregulated and ridiculously expensive. We don't qualify for a plan under...

Does anybody have any experience or knowledge about using UV lights for driveline sterilization/disinfection? Saw an old post which referenced using a UV light from Amazon to disinfect the area around the driveline where it enters the body before applying sterile bandage. Tried to do some research...

Good Evening, So I am assuming that most patients here are on medicare medical insurance. Can anyone share what the monthly out of pocket cost are for someone who has an LVAD unit? Hospital staff is not really giving me a straight answer. Should be pretty straight forward. Anyone have any financial...

Hello All! My husband and I are moving and came across some extra accessories free to anyone who can use them, I know not everyone's insurance covers. All compatible with Heart Mate 3 Shower bag w/ straps Belt case with optional straps Cross body battery support. He has since been transplanted. Feel...

Hello all, I'm not exactly new to living with an LVAD since I've had mine for two years now, but I'm still adjusting and trying to cope with it. It's a huge change in my life that happened at a very young age. I was only twenty-one years old when I got my LVAD and I've spent two of my birthdays in...