German mini blood pump could save children's lives
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
Researchers in Germany have developed what they call "the first mini blood pump in the world" - a 200 gram, pneumatic pump with a 12 mm diameter, tri-leaflet, polyurethane valve. The device, for short-term use in children waiting for a heart transplant or operation, was developed over a ten-year period by the Helmholtz Institute for Biomedical Technology in Aachen. It has undergone clinical trials at Lubeck University and the Berlin Charite, and is now in use at six German and two French clinics.