Excor for kids hearts
December 19, 2011
AMERICAN children who have
suffered heart failure, now have
access to a new device that
supports their weakened hearts
and keeps them alive until a donor
for a heart transplant can be found.
The Excor Pediatric System, made
by a German company, Berlin
Heart, has been approved by the
US Food and Drug Administration,
and is a mechanical pulsatile
cardiac assist device that consists
of one or two external pneumatic
blood pumps as well as multiple
tubes to connect the blood pumps
to heart chambers and the great
arteries.
The device comes in graduated
sizes to fit children from newborns
to teens.
In Excor’s primary U.S. study,
which involved of 48 patients, its
usage was found to improve
survival to transplant in patients
when compared with the use of
extracorporeal membrane
oxygenation which is the current
standard of care (although not FDA
approved).
According to the FDA, between
12-17% of children and 23% of
infants die whilst on the waitlist
for a heart transplant.
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