ACC: Cardiac Assist's TandemHeart Provides Extracorporeal Circulatory Support for up to Six Hours

The TandemHeart PTVA System by Cardiac Assist provides up to five liters per minute of blood flow through a cardiac catheterization procedure in as little as 30 minutes. The system, which recently surpassed its 850th successful procedure, is FDA cleared for extracorporeal circulatory support for up to six hours for procedures not requiring full cardiopulmonary bypass.

Fully reimbursed by Medicare under existing DRG codes, the TandemHeart can be placed rapidly in the cath lab or operating room, providing temporary extracorporeal circulatory support.

Cardiac Assist also recently introduced the Escort Controller component, one of three primary components of the TandemHeart PTVA System. Weighing only 21 pounds, it can be mounted at bedside, on an IV pole or on a table top. It is intended primarily for AC power use, but has enough battery back-up power for an hour of operation.

March 2007