Hydraulic Testing of Intravascular Axial Flow Blood Pump Designs With a Protective Cage of Filaments for Mechanical Cavopulmonary Assist

To provide hemodynamic support to patients with a failing single ventricle, we are developing a percutaneously inserted, magnetically levitated axial flow blood pump designed to augment pressure in the cavopulmonary circulation. The device is designed to serve as a bridge-to-transplant, bridge-to-recovery, bridge-to-hemodynamic stability, or bridge-to-surgical reconstruction. This study evaluated the hydraulic performance of three blood pump prototypes (a four-bladed impeller, a three-bladed impeller, and a three-bladed impeller with a four-bladed diffuser) whose designs evolved from previous design optimization phases. Each prototype included the same geometric protective cage of filaments, which stabilize the rotor within the housing and protect the housing wall from the rotating blades. All prototypes delivered pressure rises over a range of flow rates and rotational speeds that would be sufficient to augment hemodynamic conditions in the cavopulmonary circulation. The four-bladed impeller outperformed the two remaining prototypes by >40%; this design was able to generate a pressure rise of 4-28 mm Hg for flow rates of 0.5-10 L/min at rotational speeds of 4,000-7,000 RPM. Successful development of this blood pump will provide clinicians with a feasible therapeutic option for mechanically supporting the failing Fontan. ASAIO Journal 2010; 56:17-23.