An abdominally placed, implantable left ventricular assist system for long-term use.
An implantable left ventricular assist system was developed for long-term use. The system includes an implantable blood pump, a portable control drive unit (CDU), and a monitoring system. The blood pump was designed to be positioned in the left abdominal wall and was made of segmented polyether polyurethane. A percutaneous drive line connected it to the external CDU. The CDU included a continuous pump performance monitoring system that measured electrical impedance between the two metal connectors of a blood pump. In animal experiments using six adult goats, the pump was installed between the left ventricular apex and the descending aorta, and it was placed in the abdominal wall. No antithrombogenic agents were administered during the course of the experiment. This LVAS was easy to use and provided stable hemodynamic conditions for > 8 weeks. Pump output (Op), estimated by impedance, was linearly related to Op measured with an electromagnetic flowmeter. Pump performance was effectively estimated, and the fill-empty drive was well controlled by impedance. There were no significant abnormal hematologic or blood chemistry values, no signs of infection around the pump pocket (except in one animal), and no obvious thromboembolic symptoms. Maximum flow was 6.7 L/min with use of a prototype portable CDU (dimensions, 500 x 168 x 435 mm; weight, 16 kg). In conclusion, this LVAS is promising for long-term clinical use.
Nakatani
T
T
National Cardiovascular Center Research Institute, Osaka, Japan.
Anai
H
H
Goto
M
M
Sasaki
E
E
Taenaka
Y
Y
Kinoshita
M
M
Akagi
H
H
Masuzawa
T
T
Baba
Y
Y
Sakaki
M
M
D000005:Abdomen / Q000601:surgery; D000818:Animals; D001810:Blood Volume; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D006041:Goats; D006353:Heart-Assist Devices; D006439:Hemodynamics; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic; D019736:Prostheses and Implants; D013997:Time Factors