6770 Bertner Ave
Houston, TX 77030

Mission:

Our mission is to advance the current understanding of the use of stem cells in the treatment of patients with cardiovascular disease. The primary goal of the Stem Cell Center is to help patients through the advancement of clinical stem cell research. The Stem Cell Center investigators are a highly trained team of nurses, cardiologists, and surgeons who are working to further the current understanding of how stem cells function in cardiovascular disease, how stem cells are recruited to heart injury, how stem cells can improve the heart function after an acute injury (as is the case in acute myocardial infarction) or after countless repeated injuries (as is the case in ischemic heart failure). The Stem Cell Center, through numerous pre-clinical studies, aims at exploring the basic aspects and influences of stem cells on animal models of cardiovascular disease. With numerous collaborative relationships with renowned institutions both near and far, the Stem Cell Center hopes to bridge the basic science understanding of stem cell action with bedside treatment strategies in patients with cardiovascular disease. Another mission of the Stem Cell Center is education. We have an active training program in stem cell research for both US and international doctors. Each year, the center invites doctors from around the country and the world to participate in our research programs. Our members actively participate in numerous scientific meetings and collaborate with other institutions in the United States and abroad to improve the understanding of stem cell therapy.

Director:

Emerson Perin, MD, PhD

Background of Director:

Dr. Emerson Perin is the Director of New Interventional Cardiovascular Technology, home of the Stem Cell Center at Texas Heart Institute. He is Board Certified in Internal Medicine, Cardiovascular Disease and Interventional Cardiology. He graduated from Federal University of Rio Grande do Sol, School of Medicine, Porte Alegre, Brazil. He is a leader in Stem Cell Therapy and renowned for his NOGA^® mapping and injection expertise.

Major Accomplishments:

• First FDA approved study for the treatment of chronic ischemia with autlogous bone marrow.
• NOGA^® training site for excellance in NOGA^® assisted mapping and injecting.
• Awarded NIH grant as one of 5 centers in the United States to treat subjects with various treatments of cell therapy

Current Projects:

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. The Stem Cell Center has pioneered stem cell research in patients with ischemic heart failure and is actively recruiting patients who:

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

Acute MI Acute myocardial infarction (heart attack) occurs when an artery that feeds the heart (coronary artery) becomes blocked and blood flow to that area of the heart is cut off leading to muscle damage. The usual course of therapy is to be admitted to the hospital, open the blocked artery with a balloon, stent, or surgical bypass, then to be placed on medicines hoping the heart will recover. The Stem Cell Center is now teaming up with local physicians/hospitals to identify patients who have had a recent heart attack (within 5 days) treated with balloon/stents in order to see if stem cell therapy would aid in the recovery of heart muscle.

Critical Limb Ischemia Peripheral vascular disease results from blockages in arteries that feed the muscles and tissues of the legs. If there are severe blockages, patients may develop severe pain in their leg muscles when walking (claudication), pain in their leg muscles at rest, or no blood flow leading to limb loss. The Stem Cell Center is now investigating the effects of injecting bone marrow isolated stem cells directly into the leg muscles in legs affected by blocked arteries. The Stem Cell Center is now actively recruiting patients:

• with severe leg pain from blocked arteries in the legs (claudication).
• with evidence on non-invasive testing (i.e. ABI) of blockage.
• not amendable to conventional therapy including bypass or angioplasty.
• with no active infection in the affected leg.

Website:

www.texasheart.org/stemcell

Clinical Trials:

Please email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call us at 1-866-924-STEM (7836) if you are interested in any of our clinical trials or if you would like some more information.