PHYSIOLOGICALLY RESPONSIVE VAD

摘要

A ventricular assist device incorporating a rotary pump, such as a rotary impeller pump is implantable in fluid communication with a ventricle and an artery to assist blood flow from the ventricle to the artery. The device includes a pump drive circuit supplying power to the pump, one or more sensors for sensing one or more electrophysiological signals such as electrogram signals in and a signal processing circuit connected to the sensors and the pump drive circuit. The signal processing circuit is operative to detect the sensor signals and control power supplied to the pump from the pump drive circuit so that the pump runs in a pulsatile mode, with a varying speed synchronized with the cardiac cycle so that it operates in copulsation or counterpulsation with the cycle. The cardiac cycle for purposes of synchronization can also be based on an average of two or more cardiac cycles.

主权项

1. A ventricular assist device comprising:
a rotary pump configured to be implantable in fluid communication with a ventricle and an artery of a subject to assist blood flow from the ventricle to the artery; a pump drive circuit for applying power to the pump; one or more sensors for sensing one or more electrogram signals in a patient; and a signal processing circuit in communication with the sensors and the pump drive circuit, the signal processing circuit being operative to receive the electrogram signals from the sensors, and control power supplied to the pump from the pump drive circuit so that in a normal pulsatile mode the pump drive circuit varies the power applied to the pump in synchronism with the cardiac cycle as determined by the electrogram signals, and such variation causes the pump to run with a varying speed synchronized with the cardiac cycle of the subject so that the pump speeds up and slows down during each cardiac cycle, wherein the varying speed is synchronized with the cardiac cycle so that the pump operates at a maximum speed during ventricular diastole.