Swedish News Blog

SEATTLE, Jan. 22, 2013 - Swedish Heart & Vascular Institute cardiothoracic surgeon Eric Lehr, M.D., and one of his patients were interviewed for an article on robotic-assisted surgery that appears in the Feb. 11 issue of Fortune magazine.

SEATTLE, Oct. 26, 2012 – Swedish Medical Center's seven-year fund-raising initiative, called The Campaign for Swedish, has raised $103 million, exceeding its initial $100 million fund-raising goal in approximately five-and-a-half years. The Campaign, launched to help improve patient care and treatment options throughout the Swedish system, is the largest fund-raising effort undertaken by the private, non-profit health system to date.

SEATTLE, Sept. 11, 2012 - For patients too sick to undergo open-heart surgery, a new, FDA-approved, minimally invasive aortic valve replacement procedure - now being performed by Swedish Heart & Vascular Institute (SHVI) providers - is offering new hope to patients whose life-threatening heart condition was previously inoperable.

SEATTLE, March 30, 2012 - Seattle NBC affiliate KING Television (Channel 5) aired a story during their 5 p.m. PT newscast tonight about a relatively new, FDA-approved medical device called LifeVest ®. The wearable defibrillator is a treatment option for sudden cardiac arrest that offers patients advanced protection and monitoring as well as improved quality of life.

LifeVest is the first wearable defibrillator. Unlike an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD), the LifeVest is worn outside the body rather than implanted in the chest. This device continuously monitors the patient's heart with dry, non-adhesive sensing electrodes to detect life-threatening abnormal heart rhythms. If a life-threatening rhythm is detected, the device alerts the patient prior to delivering a treatment shock, and thus allows a conscious patient to delay the treatment shock. If the patient becomes unconscious, the device releases a Blue™ gel over the therapy electrodes and delivers an electrical shock to restore normal rhythm.

 Swedish recently shot and produced a short video featuring two recipes for quick, easy and healthy Holiday drinks.