Diagnosed with Heart Failure and Out of Options?

Discover Innovative Research at the Texas Heart Institute. The Stem Cell Center of the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital in Houston, Texas is actively recruiting patients for an FDA-approved clinical study investigating the use of a patient’s own stem cells in treating ischemic heart failure from coronary artery disease.

Ischemic heart failure occurs when the heart loses its ability to pump blood efficiently. Ischemic heart failure usually results from countless heart attacks as a result of blockages in the arteries that feed the heart.

Inclusion Criteria

To be included in the study, patients must:

• be on maximal medical therapy.
• have an ejection fraction less than 45%.
• be no longer amenable to conventional therapy using angioplasty or bypass surgery.
• experience symptoms of chest pain and/or shortness of breath.

Many factors are considered before enrolling patients into a research study and enrollment varies according to inclusion criteria.

Patients on heart transplant lists can be considered for this study.

Important Considerations

If you are a patient or physician referring a patient interested in entry into a research protocol there are a few important considerations:

• The primary concern for any investigation must be the safety of all participants. 
• The Stem Cell Center conducts clinical trials in strict accordance with protocols which have been approved by institutional governing agencies including the FDA, and St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital Institutional Review Board.
• The Stem Cell Center is dedicated to conducting important, well designed, and safe clinical studies. The protocols, therefore, are very strict and no exceptions can be made regarding the criteria that are used to include or exclude patients.
• Patients are not given monetary compensation for enrollment into the different studies. Once enrolled in the trial, patients are not charged for any therapy or monitoring that is directly related to the research. 

For More Information

If you are a Patient and wish to be considered for enrollment in the Ischemic Heart Failure Trial, please call us at 832-355-9404 or toll free at 1-866-924-STEM (7836) or complete our secure online Patient Information Form. 

If you are a Physician and would like to refer a patient for consideration, please have the patient complete the secure online Patient Information Form, or please complete and fax the Release of Medical Information Form (PDF)

Principal Investigator

Emerson C. Perin, MD, PhD
Director, New Cardiovascular Interventional Technology;
Director, Clinical Research for Cardiovascular Medicine

Contact Information

Internet: www.texasheart.org/stemcell
Email: stemcell@heart.thi.tmc.edu
Toll free: 1-866-924-STEM (7836)
Phone: 832-355-9404
Fax: 832-355-9440

Updated March 2008