Permanent ventricular assist device for treating heart failure
The invention is a kit for a permanent ventricular assist device that can be permanently implanted into the circulatory system of a patient. The kit comprises one or more passive cores (Pcore), a stator, a power supply, and a controller unit. The inventors have realized that major open heart surgery, generally used for implementing a magnetic blood pump in the circulatory system, can be wholly avoided if the rotor and the stator are physically separated and are implanted respectively inside and around the blood vessel at the location of interest. Therefore the kit is characterized in that the one or more Pcores are configured to allow them to be implanted inside a blood vessel and the stator is configure to enable it to be placed outside of the blood vessel surrounding the Pcores. Also described are illustrative medical procedures for implanting the components of the kit at different locations in the body.
1. A kit for a permanent ventricular assist device (PVAD) comprising:
i) one or more passive cores (P core );
ii) a stator that is a flexible belt or bracelet comprising at least two independent sets of electromagnets;
iii) a power supply; and
iv) a controller unit; characterized in that said one or more P cores are configured to be implanted inside a blood vessel, and said stator is configured to be placed outside of said blood vessel surrounding said P cores .
2. A kit according to claim 1 , wherein the electromagnets are planar elongated bifilar coils.
3. A kit according to claim 1 , wherein each set of electromagnets has its own power supply and controller.
4. A kit according to claim 3 , wherein each electromagnet in a set is electrically connected separately to the power supply and the controller.