Innovations and Discoveries
The Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute is known around the world for its commitment to translating leading-edge research into routine patient care. Through the years, our innovations and discoveries have improved the prognosis and quality of life for patients battling heart disease.
| 1924 |  | First electrocardiogram machine installed in Los Angeles. |
| 1952 |  | First use of the thrombolytic enzymes to dissolve blood clots in the heart. |
| 1959 |  | First description of the syndrome of vasopastic angina. |
| 1970 |  | Invention of the Swan-Ganz catheter to measure blood flow and heart pressures. |
| 1973 |  | First use of drugs to dilate blood vessels in heart failure patients, revolutionizing the way severe heart disease is treated. |
| 1981 |  | First use of radioactive isotope Tc-99m to assess blood flow throughout the heart. |
| 1994 |  | First us of the mutant gene-based therapy (apo A-1 Milano) to fight atherosclerosis in experimental animals- a step toward new treatments for coronary artery disease. |
| 1995 |  | Developed imaging software used worldwide for noninvasive quantification of heart function. |
| 2001 |  | First medical center in California and one of the first in the nation to use a portable artificial heart. |
| 2005 |  | First enrolling center in a national trial of percutaneous mitral valve repair. |
| 2006 |  | First comprehensive women's heart center in the United States encompassing clinical care, research and education |
| 2009 |  | First clinical trial of cardiac-derived stem cells to treat heart attack patients |
| 2010 |  | National leader in clinical trials of new catheter procedure to replace aortic valves nonsurgically |
| 2010 |  | First hospital unit in California dedicated solely to treating advanced heart failure patients |
