Since the clinical research program was initiated in 1984, numerous clinical protocols have involved patient volunteers in studies of promising new therapeutic agents and devices. Patients in clinical research protocols develop very special relationships with study personnel, and appreciate the unusually thorough attention to detail and the inherent ongoing educational opportunities. Faculty, trainees and nurses have the opportunity to participate in developing new knowledge and contributing to evidence-based medical care.

Although the specific studies being conducted vary over time, areas commonly being studied include new drug therapies for heart failure, the role of implantable hemodynamic monitors in the care of heart failure patients, and studies of ventricular assist devices and the total artificial heart in the management of end stage heart failure.

An active physiological research program is also investigating the impact of progressive arterial stiffening on ventricular mechanics and diastolic function. Using techniques including invasive measurements of vascular stiffness and ventricular relaxation in the catheterization laboratory, and non-invasive assessment of these parameters with tonometry and echocardiography, the role of endocrine and autonomic nervous system alterations with aging, diabetes, obesity, and hypertension on the development of diastolic heart failure is being explored. The potential for interventions targeted at decreasing arterial stiffness to improve outcomes in patients with diastolic dysfunction is under active investigation.