Cardiac Assist Devices
When the heart has difficulty pumping blood — whether because of an injury or defect in the heart — heart specialists have a number of mechanical pumps, or ventricular assist devices, that can be implanted to help the heart do its job.
What Is a Ventricular Assist Device (VAD)?
A VAD is a special pump that is implanted in the body to help — or even take over — pumping blood. Some are implanted and used for only a few days or weeks; some need to be used for months or even more than a year.
VADs are divided into two main categories:
- Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) — used when the left ventricle is damaged to help the body pump blood from the left ventricle out into the body.
- Right Ventricular Assist Device (RVAD) — used to pump blood from the right atrium chamber of the heart to the pulmonary arteries and into the lungs.
In rare cases, a child may need a full biventricular assist device (biVAD) to handle the pumping in both sides of the heart.
Pacemakers
For heart rhythm disorders, SSM Health Cardinal Glennon also has cardiac specialists who can implant a pacemaker, a small device that can be programmed to stimulate the heart with an electrical “nudge” to restore and maintain the proper heart rhythm needed to pump blood in the body.
How Are They Implanted?
Heart assist devices are typically used as a “bridge” or transitional treatment option to help the heart do its job before another treatment option, such as a heart transplant, is advised or available. VADs can also be implanted and left in the body for a lifetime, which requires regular monitoring. To implant a VAD, children will undergo open-heart surgery to insert the pump. Surgeons will place the device next to, or near, the child’s own heart.
Pacemakers to help control abnormal heart rhythms are also implanted via surgery or through a vein. Minimally invasive procedures are available to implant the newest generation of smaller pacemakers, which can be placed through a tiny incision under a child’s ribcage.
Children will stay in the hospital for a few days following the implantation of a pacemaker. Implanting VADs in infants and children will require longer hospital stays.
Our Expertise
Our pediatric heart surgeons and cardiologists care for many children with heart failure who may need a mechanical pump, either for short term use to enable their heart to recover after injury or illness, or as a bridge to a heart transplant. We have expertise in the use of the Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine (ECMO), which is similar to a heart-lung bypass machine. We also offer the latest ventricular assist devices, including the Impella, the Berlin Heart EXCOR, PediMag, CentriMag, and HeartMate 3 devices.
