Implantation of rotary blood pumps into 115 patients: a single-centre experience.

From 2004 to 2009, rotary blood pumps were implanted for heart failure as a bridge to transplant or destination therapy in 101 male and 14 female patients at our institution. We report on our experiences of these patients with a follow-up of 132 patient years. Seventy-four HeartMate II axial flow pumps and 41 HeartWare centrifugal pumps were implanted in patients with non-ischaemic (n = 70) or ischaemic cardiomyopathy (n = 45). The mean age of the patients was 50 +/- 13 years. All patients were on inotropic support prior to implantation. Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation was used as a bridging procedure in 21 cases. The perioperative mortality was 14%. Hospital discharge occurred on average after 46 +/- 33 days. Twenty-two patients of this cohort received a heart transplant 492 +/- 342 days after implantation of the device. Two patients died after heart transplantation. A 1-year survival of 73% and a 2-year survival of 69% were recorded, despite a low incidence of transplant procedures. The longest support time was 1686 days. Modern left ventricular assist device technology can be used successfully for heart failure. The scarcity of donor hearts leads to prolonged periods on the device, and chronic ventricular assist device therapy has become a reality, although bridge to transplant was intended; therefore, sufficient support services for outpatient care of these patients are required.