Relationship between design and control of artificial heart for protection of the right/left balance

Right/left matching in the total artificial heart (TAH) is essential to prevent fatal volume displacement into the pulmonary circuit. Measurements were made with three different sized Rostock pneumatic artificial ventricles incorporated in the Donovan mock circulatory system together with the heart driver AKT 86. First for each ventricle we determined the dependence of the maximum effective stroke volume on the systolic driving pressure and the afterload. The right ventricle (RV) is about 10% more effective than the left ventricle (LV). Control of the TAH permits different or equal frequencies for the RV and LV. For control with equal frequencies and full-to-empty regimen of one ventricle (RV-Master or LV-Master) the ratio of designed stroke volumes between RV and LV is important. This follows from the smaller efficiency of the LV and the left-to-left shunt. Otherwise a control mode with different heart rates must be used.