Heart professionals join College of Medicine

By: Sumeet Patel

Posted: 2/11/05

Cardiologists Howard Eisen and Shelley Hankins have recently joined the University to establish the Center for Advanced Heart Failure Care at Hahnemann University Hospital.

Eisen, a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and a Thomas Vischer Professor of Medicine, will head the Division of Cardiology. Shelley, also a University Pennsylvania graduate, will serve as the Director of the Mechanical Assistance Destination Program.

"The incidence of patients with heart failure continues to increase as our population ages," commented Hankins. "More healthcare dollars are spent on the treatment of heart failure than any other diagnosis and for those with advanced disease, the chance for a five year survival is roughly 50/50."

Currently, the Center is in its infant stages of development with both Eisen and Shelley experimenting new techniques in the clinical trial phase.

"We will be implementing non-invasive procedures to diagnose transplant rejection and will also be participating in trials to improve immunosuppression for cardiac transplant patients," explains Dr. Eisen. "We are also participating in clinical trials in heart failure patients."

"In addition to standard medications, we have access to new treatments which are in development," Shelley said. "For instance, there is an implantable electrical device which stimulates and strengthens the heart and there are a number of new heart pumps in development which are smaller and less cumbersome than the pumps which are currently in use."

This new Center is just one part of the Division of Cardiology's development goals. In addition to providing comprehensive state-of-the art-care to patients living with heart failure, the division aids to educate the healthcare community and the public about prevention and treatment.

The Center will work with the University's Doctor of Therapy Program, one of the limited number of its kind in the country, to provide the best in cardiac healthcare delivery and recovery.

Eisen currently serves as the President of the American Heart Association Southeastern Pennsylvania Affiliate and as a board member for the Cardiovascular Institute of Philadelphia.

He is also on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation and is an Established Investigator of the American Heart Association National Center.

Furthermore, he has cared for almost one thousand heart transplant patients since 1995, making him one of the most experienced transplant cardiologists in the world.

Hankins, a former Temple University Hospital cardiologist and renowned expert on African-American cardiologic health, is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the American Heart Association Southeastern Pennsylvania Affiliate and is a well established publisher in the JHLT.

"I have had the fortune of working with several leaders in the heartfailure/transplant field such as Dr. Eisen," Shelley said. "Though this experience of working with individuals who seek to move the field forward, I have gained expertise and have been given the opportunity to contribute."