Abstract
Over the past two decades, rotary circulation pumps have been effectively used to treat patients suffering from chronic heart failure (CHF). However, prolonged contact of blood cells with a foreign surface of the pump can cause hemolysis, thrombosis, bleeding and other disorders. A possible solution to reduce the level of blood cells damage may be the introduction into clinical practice the pumps for maintaining blood circulation with a lower rotor speed - 2000-3000 rpm The purpose of this study was to study the effect of a developed by us disk pump for auxiliary circulation of the left ventricular bypass on hemolytic blood parameters. Methods: A study of the effect of a disk pump of auxiliary blood circulation on human donor blood parameters was conducted using a special simulation stand (n=6) and experiments on laboratory animals (n=3). Results: In studies on donated blood, the level of free hemoglobin (FreeHb) was 0.03±0.1 g/l for 4 hours of the experiment. In animal studies, in the first two days after implantation of the pump, an increase in FreeHb was observed in the range from 0.01±0 to 0.05±0.1 g/l. Further, from the third day to the end of observation, fluctuations in FreeHb in the blood were in the range of 0.03–0.04 g/l. During the same period (1-3 days), there was a significant decrease in hematocrit (Hct), which was restored to background values by the 4th day. The concentrations of sodium, calcium, chlorine ions and blood pH remained virtually unchanged throughout the experiment, and the concentration of potassium tended to increase by the 5th-7th day. Conclusion: The developed prototype of a disc-type auxiliary blood circulation pump for left ventricular bypass did not cause significant hemolytic, electrolyte and acid-base disorders in the blood during 240 minutes of experiment on the stand (in vitro) and during 7 days in an in vivo experiment. It allows to recommend this type of pump for short-term use as a promising heart replacement like a “bridge” to organ transplantation or for unloading the heart in patients with CHF.