Heart Assist Device for Infants and Toddlers

A developmental implanted left ventricular assist device (LVAD) heart pump could help save the lives of infants and small children with congenital or acquired heart disease.

The PediaFlow heart device, under development by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt, PA, USA), Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC (PA, USA), LaunchPoint Technologies (Goleta, CA, USA), and other institutions is a titanium alloy device about the size of an AA battery, which incorporates innovative magnetic-levitation technology. Blood is drawn through it by means of a high-speed rotor that essentially floats within its housing, due to the magnetic levitating forces. Thanks to the rotor geometry, designed with advanced computer models and analyses, oxygenated blood is pulled from the left ventricle through the device, returning the blood to the aorta and patient circulation. The flow rate of the PediaFlow can be varied between 0.5 to 1.5 liters per minute, depending on the size and needs of the child. The PediaFlow is being developed under the Pumps for Kids, Infants, and Neonates (PumpKIN) preclinical program, sponsored by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI, Bethesda, MD, USA).

"This research seeks to develop technologies to expand life-saving options for infants and children born with congenital heart defects or those who develop heart failure,” said a pediatrician Susan B. Shurin, M.D., acting director of the NHLBI. "Similar devices are in use in adults. Well-designed circulatory support could dramatically improve the outcomes of these young patients as they seek to recover or wait to receive a heart transplant.”

"We now have the opportunity to put PediaFlow through the necessary development and testing needed to proceed to clinical trials,” said Professor Harvey Borovetz, Ph.D., chair of the Department of Bioengineering at Pitt. "The aim is to begin human studies in three to four years.”

"We believe the PediaFlow will be capable of replacing the heart function of our smallest patients,” said Peter Wearden, M.D., Ph.D., a cardiothoracic surgeon at Children's Hospital. "Left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) have been very successful in supporting older children and adults as a bridge to eventual heart transplantation, or, in some cases, as a temporary measure that allows the heart to rest and recover. But there currently are no FDA-approved LVADs for babies and toddlers.”

Related Links:
The University of Pittsburgh
Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC
LaunchPoint Technologies
U.S. NIH National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute