Use of zirconia ceramic in the DexAide right ventricular assist device journal bearing

Our aim was to evaluate the potential use of zirconium oxide (zirconia) as a blood journal bearing material in the DexAide right ventricular assist device. The DexAide titanium stator was replaced by a zirconia stator in several blood pump builds, without changing the remaining pump hardware components. In vitro pump performance and efficiency were evaluated at a predetermined pump speed and flow. Motor power consumption decreased by 20%, and DexAide battery life was extended to over 12 h on two fully charged batteries. The zirconia stator was also successfully evaluated in a severe start/stop test pre- and postexposure of the zirconia to accelerated simulated biologic aging. This study's outcomes indicated the advantages of zirconia as an alternate journal bearing material for the DexAide device.