A magnetically levitated centrifugal blood pump with a simple-structured disposable pump head

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Medical Devices
• Cardiovascular Technology

Background:

• Extracorporeal circulation requires efficient and safe blood pumps.
• Existing blood pumps can cause blood trauma and heating issues.
• Disposable systems offer advantages in infection control and convenience.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate a novel magnetically levitated centrifugal blood pump for disposable extracorporeal systems.
• To assess the pump's performance, including head pressure, flow rate, and hemolysis.
• To compare the pump's blood trauma levels with existing devices.

Main Methods:

• A magnetically levitated centrifugal blood pump (MedTech Dispo) was designed with a contactless impeller.
• The pump utilizes a radial magnetic bearing and magnetic coupling for rotation and thermal isolation.
• Performance metrics including head pressure, flow rate, and normalized index of hemolysis were measured.

Main Results:

• The MedTech Dispo achieved a head pressure >300 mm Hg at 5 L/min.
• The normalized index of hemolysis was 0.0025 +/- 0.0005 g/100 L, significantly lower than a comparator device.
• The pump head has a priming volume of 23 mL and a rotor diameter of 50 mm.

Conclusions:

• The MedTech Dispo demonstrates high pumping performance and significantly reduced blood trauma.
• The novel magnetic levitation design minimizes blood heating and simplifies the disposable mechanism.
• This pump represents a promising advancement for disposable extracorporeal blood circulation systems.