Sunshine Heart, a provider of technologies cardiovascular medicine, has enetered into a joint development program with two industrial design and software firms to develop an electronic power and software driver for its C-Pulse Heart Assist System.
The C-Pulse system features a balloon counterpulsation technology that is designed to assist the left ventricle by reducing the workload required to pump blood throughout the body and by increasing blood flow to the coronary arteries.
The new C-Pulse design will integrate the power driver and battery pack into one unit, reducing the size and the weight of external components to improve mobility and comfort for the patient without altering C-Pulse implantable components or the way in which the device functions inside the body, the Sunshine Heart said.
The new single unit will also feature a number of software enhancements that are intended to allow medical professionals to collect additional data to improve patient management.
Sunshine Heart chief executive officer Dave Rosa said that due to its small internal components, the C-Pulse can ideally be implanted through minimally invasive procedures as opposed to a full sternotomy procedure.
“With the redesign of C-Pulse external components, the system will be more ergonomically appealing and comfortable for patients. Our ultimate goal is to make the C-Pulse a fully-implantable system which, much like a pacemaker, can be easily implanted and effortlessly managed by patients,” Rosa said.