VAD Patient Celebrates Anniversary

The first recipient of a ventricular assist device (VAD) designed for destination therapy has celebrated the one-year anniversary of implantation, also marking the first anniversary of the first use of an axial flow VAD for this application in the United States.

Destination therapy refers to mechanical circulatory support for heart patients who are not eligible for heart transplantation. The patient was 78 at the time of implant and had previously had multiple heart surgeries. His condition worsened to the point where his heart was no longer able to supply enough oxygenated blood through his body to sustain his life. VAD changed that.

The device is called the DeBakey VAD, named for the pioneer of cardiovascular surgery, Michael DeBakey, chancellor emeritus of Baylor College of Medicine (Houston, TX, USA). The DeBakey VAD heart pump is the result of extensive research by Dr. DeBakey, the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Baylor College of Medicine, and MicroMed Cardiovascular, Inc., (Houston, TX, USA). MicroMed commercialized the final unit. Because of its small size, the DeBakey VAD allows people who use it to be highly mobile.

MicroMed currently has two ongoing clinical investigations in more than 30 leading U.S. heart transplant centers to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the DeBakey VAD for use as a bridge-to-transplant and for destination therapy for patients ineligible for a heart transplant. The DeBakey VAD Child is the only approved miniaturized implantable VAD in the United States that is available for use in children.

"This tiny devices appears to provide full support but without the size and noise issues of our older devices,” noted Dr. Soon Park, chairman of California Pacific Medical Center's (CPMC) department of cardiovascular and thoracic surgery. The VAD is about the size of a "C” cell battery and weighs only four ounces.




Related Links:
MicroMed
Baylor College of Medicine