A distensible wire mesh for a cardiac sleeve

Brief Description

Researchers at University of California, Irvine have developed a novel distensible wire mesh that can be used in the heart surround sleeve component of a whole heart assist device. This wire mesh design enables the device to collapse and expand reversibly for a variety of uses, such as during the delivery process of the whole heart assist device as well as for allowing the device to contract and expand to physically pump the heart.

Suggested uses

This distensible wire mesh can be used in any structure or device that needs to be able to reversibly collapse and expand in size, such as in the sleeve structure of a whole heart assist device.

Technology Description

Heart failure affects at least 26 million people worldwide and generates an enormous clinical and economic burden globally. Due to the limited availability of heart donors, heart transplants are not a feasible solution for most people. Many of these individuals instead use ventricular assist devices (VADs). However, VADs are mechanical pumps that are intertwined with ventricles of the heart, making them continually in contact with blood. This mechanism requires patients to take blood-thinners to prevent blood clots from forming. In addressing this problem, researchers at University of California, Irvine previously developed a whole-heart assist device comprised of an implantable sleeve that wraps externally around the in-tact heart (see Tech ID: 30542 & Patent: 11376417). This cardiac sleeve device surrounds a failing heart to assist in pumping and does not directly contact blood, which is critical in mitigating clotting risk.

The team of UCI researchers have now invented a distensible wire mesh for use in this whole heart assist device, as well as in any other structure or device that needs to be able to reversibly collapse and expand in size. This novel design enables the wire mesh to be leveraged in a variety of uses that require dynamic changes in size. For example, the novel wire mesh in the cardiac sleeve allows the device to be compressed into a catheter for delivery to the heart. Additionally, the design enables the whole heart assist device to contract and expand to pump a failing heart externally, and it makes the device easily adjustable to the size of the patient’s heart.

State Of Development

Feasibility animal study is in progress.

Patent Status