|
|
(HealthNewsDigestcom) – Hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) is a complex and rare heart defect present at birth in which the left side of a child’s heart is severely underdeveloped. At Mayo Clinic, physicians and researchers in the Todd and Karen Wanek Family Program for Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome are looking for ways to delay or even prevent heart failure for people with HLHS.
The program has launched clinical trials using a patient’s own stem cells with the goal of strengthening the heart. One of the clinical trials uses stem cells collected from a baby’s own umbilical cord blood banked with the program. The stem cells are injected into the baby’s heart during the second of three surgeries.
The phase I clinical trial is the first research monitored by the Food and Drug Administration that demonstrates the potential of regenerative therapy for HLHS through collecting, processing and injecting an infant’s own stem cells directly into the heart at the time of surgery.
Stem cell therapy for HLHS is one of several approaches the Center for Regenerative Medicine is studying that goes beyond disease management to search for and discover therapies that support the body in repairing, regenerating and restoring itself to a state of well-being.
Read the full news release on the Mayo Clinic News Network.