A 31-year-old member asked:
what is the left ventricular assist device?
3 doctor answers • 8 doctors weighed in

Dr. Samuel Hahn answered
Cardiology 28 years experience
Booster pump: Instead of a totally artificial heart which replaces the entire heart, an lvad is a much smaller pump that boosts the pumping ability of the left ventricle (the main pumping chamber). This has many technical advantages over a totally artificial heart.
6074 viewsReviewed >2 years ago

Dr. ALADIN MARIANO answered
Thoracic Surgery 49 years experience
As the name implies: It is a device that assist the lv. It does so by relieving "work" or stress on the lv. The principle is for the blood going to the lv be diverted to a "pump" which then functions as a substitute lv to pump the blood back to circulate. Your natural lv then gets a rest as a substitute pump is doing the "work". The pump can be in or outside your body.
5514 viewsAnswered >2 years ago

Dr. Vasudev Ananthram answered
Cardiology 32 years experience
Device, propel blood: It is a device that propels blood thus taking over the function of the weak and failing left lower heart chamber. It is typically implanted in patients with severe class 4 heart failure who would otherwise have little mobility or not survive due to the failing heart.
5744 viewsReviewed >2 years agoMerged
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Last updated Aug 29, 2019
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