Procyrion, a company based in Houston, Texas, has developed and is working on bringing to market a new intra-aortic support pump that may help people with heart failure “reduce afterload, reduce workload of the heart, and increase end-organ perfusion,” according to the company. The device was originally envisioned by Dr. Reynolds M. Delgado, III, a cardiologist and Medical Director of Mechanical Support Devices in Heart Failure at the Texas Heart Institute. At 6mm in diameter, the Aortix™ device is narrower than a common pencil, and is delivered via a catheter in a minimally invasive outpatient procedure that takes about ten minutes to complete.
It features anchors that expand and grab onto the wall of the aorta, but that don’t impede the blood flow created by the heart. Instead of taking over the heart’s function, the Aortix™ pump assists the heart and helps blood perfuse the end organs. The device is expected to be used anywhere from a week up to six months and to be removed in another minimally invasive procedure. While installed, the pump is connected to a wire that is interfaced with an external power source.