The Medtronic CoreValve® U.S. Pivotal Trial is one notable trial currently underway. PinnacleHealth is one of only 45 locations nationwide to offer this trial, which involves implanting an artificial valve through a minimally invasive or “percutaneous” method. Rather than a surgeon opening the heart, the artificial valve is inserted through small catheters in the groin or underneath the shoulder bone. This technique is an investigational treatment for patients whose secondary health issues make them poor candidates for invasive surgery.

Another breakthrough trial being offered through the PinnacleHealth Cardiovascular Institute is the Left Main Revascularization Trial, also known as EXCEL. 

“This trial procedure treats severe blockages in the left main coronary artery using stents rather than traditional invasive bypass surgery,” says Felix Gutierrez, MD, FACC, cardiologist with Moffitt Heart and Vascular Group, PinnacleHealth Cardiovascular Institute. “PinnacleHealth is privileged to be one of only a few clinical trial sites in the world and the only one in central Pennsylvania currently offering EXCEL.”

As an enrollment center for the EXCEL research trial, PinnacleHealth will be part of a cutting-edge effort to determine whether coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) or stenting is a more effective treatment for coronary heart disease in patients with left main blockages. Coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, which means EXCEL is a landmark study and a unique opportunity for people in central Pennsylvania who qualify.