Control strategy for biventricular assistance with mixed-flow pumps

A left ventricular assist device (LVAD) is an effective method to rescue severe heart failure. Although some require a biventricular assist, the control method for the biventricular assist device (BVAD) with a rotary pump is rarely shown. The objective of this study was to investigate the strategy for controlling BVAD with rotary pumps by in vivo studies. Using 5 piglets, we set a BVAD through a left thoracotomy and made global ischemia for 30 min by clamping the base of the ascending aorta. After unclamping, the analysis of pumping performance acted for 6 h reperfusion. We set the target flow of the LVAD and set the right ventricular assist device (RVAD) speed limit as less than when the atrial collapse occurs. To detect the ventricular collapse without any specific sensor, we calculated the index of current amplitude from motor current waveform and simultaneous mean current value. In all cases, over 6 h of observation was performed, and the RVAD was weaned almost automatically.