Cardiac assist device using fluid

Abstract

Abstract A cardiac assist device and method of use for assisting the function of a heart (20). The assist device includes a compressor (102) positioned against the epicardial wall of the heart (20) and a field generator (104, 106) for driving a fluid coupled to the compressor to exert pressure on the heart (20). The field generator (104, 106) may be a magnetic field generator and the fluid coupled to the compressor (102) may be a ferrofluid. The compressor (102) may include two containment regions (146, 148) containing ferrofluid on opposite sides of the heart (20), and a pair of compression portions (150, 152) coupled to the containment regions (146, 148). The filled generator may be electromagnetic which includes two electromagnets (104, 106) having corresponding core portions and corresponding coils. The electromagnets (104, 106) may be disposed with their north and south poles in alignment and separated by a gap to allow relative movement. The electromagnets (104, 106) may be external or internal to the body.

Inventors

• 👤 Roger N. Hastings
• 👤 Bruce Persson
• 👤 Dnyanesh Talpade
• 👤 Daniel M. Lafontaine

Bibliographic Details