The recent clinical use of a pneumatic artificial heart at the University of Utah has focused attention on the role of blood pumps in the support of the circulation. Pneumatically powered assist pumps are now in clinical trials in patients with profound but reversible heart failure after open-heart surgery; survival rates as high as 50% in a heretofore lethal condition have been encouraging. Th...

OBJECTIVES Orthotopic heart transplantation is the standard of care for end-stage heart disease. Left ventricular assist device implantation offers an alternative treatment approach. Left ventricular assist device practice has changed dramatically since the 2008 Food and Drug Administration approval of the HeartMate II (Thoratec, Pleasanton, Calif), but at what societal cost? The present study ...

The evolution of Microelectronics has made the application of Programmable Logic Devices (PLDs) inevitable in modern digital circuit designs and when they are deployed in Safety Systems, their Reliability and Safety need to be proved beyond doubt. The design will have to meet the stringent requirements. This paper provides a review of commercially available PLDs and the design methodologies to ...

The use of mechanical assist devices as a 'bridge' to cardiac transplantation, as a "bridge" to recovery, or as a destination therapy in end-stage heart failure, is increasing. Studies of different modes of rehabilitation in this population are lacking. We report the benefits of inspiratory muscle training on the exercise capacity and quality of life in the recipient of a left ventricular assis...

Cell-based biosensors provide new horizons for medical diagnostics by adopting complex recognition elements such as mammalian cells in microfluidic devices that are simple, cost efficient and disposable. This combination renders possible a new range of applications in the fields of diagnostics and personalized medicine. The review looks at the most recent developments in cell-based biosensing m...

Left ventricular assist device therapy has radically improved congestive heart failure survival with smaller rotary pumps. The driveline used to power today's left ventricular assist devices, however, continues to be a source of infection, traumatic damage, and rehospitalization. Previous attempts to wirelessly power left ventricular assist devices using transcutaneous energy transfer systems h...

Introduction: Heart failure deterioration is responsible for elevated mortality rates in the heart transplantation waiting lists. In Chagas cardiomyopathy, the presence of biventricular dysfunction increases the severity of this complication. Method: We studied 141 patients with cardiogenic shock, listed in priority for heart transplantation. Forty six patients presented Chagas cardiomyopathy a...

Scale-down approaches have long been applied in bioprocessing to resolve scale-up problems. Miniaturized bioreactors have thrived as a tool to obtain process relevant data during early-stage process development. Microfluidic devices are an attractive alternative in bioprocessing development due to the high degree of control over process variables afforded by the laminar flow, and the possibilit...

The development of implanted devices is essential because of their direct effect on the lives and safety of humanity. This paper presents the current issues and challenges related to all methods used to harvest energy for implantable biomedical devices. The advantages, disadvantages, and future trends of each method are discussed. The concept of harvesting energy from environmental sources and ...

Heart transplantation is only available for a limited number of patients with end-stage heart failure. Since the arrival of newer ventricular assist devices, mechanical circulatory support constitutes an alternative therapy for patients with advanced heart failure. The first-generation of pulsatile-flow devices were used only for bridging the sickest patients to transplantation. Frequent advers...