A novel electro-mechanical Ventricular Assist Device for refractory cardiac insufficiency

The most severe limitation of the Left Ventricular Assist Devices (LVADs) currently utilized is their invasivity; they work as a bypass between the left ventricular apex and the aorta. A possible strategy that can be adopted to overcome such a limitation consists in utilizing systems that assist the heart in its contraction from the outside without directly transporting the blood and that do not require highly invasive surgical treatments. In this study we conduct the feasibility analysis of a novel LVAD design that allows the principal limitations of traditional circulatory support systems to be overcome.