Pericardial applied left ventricular assist device (PAL-VAD): Evaluation of chronic performance, optimisation and completion of a first-in-human feasibility study

Heart failure affects hundreds of thousands of people in the UK.

It occurs when the heart is unable to pump as well as it should, meaning it is less able to supply the rest of the body with the oxygen and nutrients it needs. This is an incurable and often debilitating condition with limited treatment options. Some patients can be surgically fitted with a machine to help the heart pump, but this surgery carries risks.

Professor David Adlam and his team have been working to develop a new device that can be safely introduced into the body without major surgery.

The team have already shown that the newly-developed pericardial applied left ventricular assist device, or PAL-VAD, can work effectively and safely in pig hearts for a few hours.

The device is inserted into the chest wall through a small incision and inflates and deflates against the heart in time with the heartbeat to help the heart pump more forcefully. In this project, the team will look to see whether the PAL-VAD can help pig hearts to beat for up to 72 hours. If found to be both effective and safe, PAL-VAD could then go on to be tested in humans.

Heart failure is a debilitating condition that urgently needs new treatment approaches. This research could unlock new strategies to keep hearts beating effectively.