LVAD therapy has radically improved congestive heart failure survival by employing smaller, rotary pumps that demonstrated improved reliability and lower morbidity over their larger, pulsatile predecessors. Percutaneous drivelines lead to infections and increase morbidity due to re-hospitalizations. The initial enthusiasm over earlier Transcutaneous Energy Transfer Systems (TETS) based technologies rapidly waned due to limited reliability and efficiency of power delivery even over a few millimeters and problems with alignment. The Free-range Resonant Electrical Energy Delivery (FREE-D) uses magnetically coupled resonators to efficiently transfer wireless power from a vest worn by the patient to a LVAD implanted in their body. We have put together a strong collaboration to demonstrate the feasibility of the FREE-D system. We have demonstrated in the lab that the system works equally well with axial pumps and magnetically levitated systems with no power failure and uninterrupted performance over a period of weeks. The system is robust under differing power requirements and is stable at increasing distances. Additionally, angular misalignment does not have adverse effects on system efficiency or performance. The current grant application is the first step toward realizing our vision of a wirelessly powered LVAD system. We sincerely believe that we will be able to develop a robust platform for a wireless power delivery based on our prior work. Such a power delivery system will offer innumerable advantages to our patient population including lowered morbidity, better quality of life, and improved long-term survival.

Public Health Relevance

We envision a wirelessly powered left ventricular assist device (LVAD) affording unrestricted patient mobility. Free-range Resonant Electrical Energy Delivery (FREE-D) uses coupled resonators to efficiently transfer wireless power from a vest worn by the patient to an LVAD device without direct contact. Bringing this technology from bench to bedside will reduce patient morbidity and improve the quality of life associated with LVAD use.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Type
Exploratory/Developmental Grants (R21)
Project #
1R21HL118611-01
Application #
8490949
Study Section
Bioengineering, Technology and Surgical Sciences Study Section (BTSS)
Program Officer
Baldwin, Tim
Project Start
2013-08-19
Project End
2015-07-31
Budget Start
2013-08-19
Budget End
2014-07-31
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
2013
Total Cost
$239,157
Indirect Cost
$68,188
Name
Yale University
Department
Surgery
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
043207562
City
New Haven
State
CT
Country
United States
Zip Code
06520
Letzen, Brian; Park, Jiheum; Tuzun, Zeynep et al. (2018) Design and Development of a Miniaturized Percutaneously Deployable Wireless Left Ventricular Assist Device: Early Prototypes and Feasibility Testing. ASAIO J 64:147-153
Bouwmeester, J Christopher; Park, Jiheum; Geirsson, Arnar et al. (2018) Quantification of Pulsed Operation of Rotary Left Ventricular Assist Devices with Wave Intensity Analysis. ASAIO J :
Waters, Benjamin H; Park, Jiheum; Bouwmeester, J Christopher et al. (2018) Electrical power to run ventricular assist devices using the Free-range Resonant Electrical Energy Delivery system. J Heart Lung Transplant 37:1467-1474
Wang, Jake X; Smith, Joshua R; Bonde, Pramod (2014) Energy transmission and power sources for mechanical circulatory support devices to achieve total implantability. Ann Thorac Surg 97:1467-74