Contrary to the popular adage "It's not rocket science," this is rocket science!
In a ground breaking venture, a new device has been built by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) that can power human hearts by using materials and technology that are usually reserved for making rockets and satellites.
The heart-powering device named Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) is an artificial mechanical heart pump, which can be implanted into a person's chest to assist in pumping the oxygenated blood throughout the body. LVAD can pump 3 to 5 liters of blood in a minute, which is almost as close as what a biological heart does.
More than six years of effort by a team of about 20 odd experts that include metallurgists, electronics engineers, specialists on flow mechanics, designers, and cardiologists have gone into coming up with the most appropriate design for this state-of-the-art device.
"Material used in a rocket, the mechanism used in a rocket, electronics used in a rocket are combined to form the device . . . which is useful as a first step towards heart transplantation. This shows that it is a very good alternative for an artificial heart," said K Sivan, Director of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (a space research center of ISRO) at Thiruvananthapuram, India.
The device has been made from a special alloy of titanium, which is "bio-compatible," and weighs approximately 100 grams (0.22 pounds). The newly developed device costs about Rs 1.25 lakhs (almost $2000) whereas a similar machine, when imported from international market, can easily run into crores of rupees or millions of dollars.
So far, the pump has been tested only on animals and hence considered as a "work in progress" by the scientists at Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTMST) in Thiruvananthapuram, where the experiment had taken place.
At least five healthy pigs were surgically operated, and the function of their left ventricle was replaced with the LVAD. The pigs survived the entire duration of the experiment which lasted for about six hours, without any damage occurring to the blood as it was being pumped by the assist device after bypassing the biological heart. All the other vital organs of the pigs also remained healthy without any cause of concern throughout the experiment.
Though the trial has been successful on pigs, the device is still not ready as it has yet to be tested on humans. The researchers have mentioned that they are going to continue testing the device on other animals and only after extensive testing will they be running the trial on humans.
Photo: Patrick J. Lynch | Flickr
