A modular assembly for a portable hemodialysis system may include a dialysis unit, e.g., that contains suitable components for performing hemodialysis, such as a dialyzer, one or more pumps to circulate blood through the dialyzer, a source of dialysate, and one or more pumps to circulate the dialysate through the dialyzer, and a power unit having a housing that contains suitable components for providing operating power to the pumps of the dialysis unit. The power unit may be selectively connected to the dialysis unit and provide power (e.g., pneumatic power in the form of pressure and/or to vacuum) to the dialysis unit for the pumps when connected to the dialysis unit, but may be incapable of providing power to the dialysis unit when disconnected from the dialysis unit. The dialysis unit and the power unit are sized and weighted to each be carried by hand by a human.

Improvements in fluid volume measurement systems are disclosed for a pneumatically actuated diaphragm pump in general, and a peritoneal dialysis cycler using a pump cassette in particular. Pump fluid volume measurements are based on pressure measurements in a pump control chamber and a reference chamber in a two-chamber model, with different sections of an apparatus being modeled using a combination of adiabatic, isothermal and polytropic processes. Real time or instantaneous fluid flow measurements in a pump chamber of the diaphragm pump are also disclosed, in this case using a one-chamber ideal gas model and using a high speed processor to obtain and process pump control chamber pressures during fluid flow into or out of the pump chamber.

A heart support device for circulatory assistance is disclosed. The device comprises a chamber body (10) defining a chamber having an internal volume configured to be filled with blood. The chamber body (10) has a first opening (12) and the chamber is dimensioned such that the first opening (12) and the chamber are fully disposed within a chamber of the human heart. A dynamic volume body (14) is provided and configured to be inflated or deflated to alternately increase or decrease the interior volume of the chamber. A catheter (16) comprising at least one lumen in fluid communication with the dynamic volume body is configured to deliver fluid to the dynamic volume body to inflate the dynamic volume body. A directional flow structure is configured to direct a flow of blood out of the chamber in a direction substantially aligned with a direction in which the catheter (16) extends.

A muscle-powered pulsation device for cardiac support including a muscle energy converter device including a piston arrangement for directing fluid out of an outlet of the muscle energy converter device using energy provided by a patient's muscle, and a hydraulic volume amplification device fluidly connected to the muscle energy converter device. The volume amplification device includes a casing including an inlet and an outlet, the inlet in fluid communication with the outlet of the muscle energy converter device, at least one resilient member positioned within an interior cavity defined by the casing, and at least one piston member movably and sealingly positioned within the interior cavity of the casing and operatively connected to the at least one resilient member, the at least one piston member separating the interior cavity into a first chamber and a second chamber.

Disclosed are techniques to generate ideal or near ideal profiles for regulation of the volume of fluid flow in a drive system of a pump for an externally mechanically supported heart, pressure in or near the pump, or measured strain/strain rates of the supported heart, based on an estimate/measurement of the heart's size. A part of the techniques for regulation may focus on achieving mechanical synchrony with the intrinsic cyclic pump function of a partially functional heart. The techniques do not fundamentally rely on hemodynamic measurements to function. However, when hemodynamic measures are available, those measures can be fed to control algorithms to increase the efficacy of regulation to restore the heart's pump function.

A method and device to assist the performance of a heart with at least one pump that is formed as a rotary pump and driven via magneto coupling. The pump includes a magnetically driven rotor rotatable within a surrounding rotor housing to act upon blood flowing from an inflow tube toward the magnetically driven rotor, and a second magnetic device axially aligned with the inflow tube and positioned to magnetically drive rotation of the magnetically driven rotor via the magneto coupling.

A method and device to assist the performance of a heart with at least one pump that is formed as a rotary pump and driven via magneto coupling. The pump includes a magnetically driven rotor rotatable within a surrounding rotor housing to act upon blood flowing from an inflow tube toward the magnetically driven rotor, and a second magnetic device axially aligned with the inflow tube and positioned to magnetically drive rotation of the magnetically driven rotor via the magneto coupling.

A device to assist the performance of a heart with at least one pump that is formed as a rotary pump and driven via a magneto coupling.

A device to assist the performance of a heart with at least one pump that is formed as a rotary pump and driven via a magneto coupling.

A device to assist the performance of a heart with at least one pump that is formed as a rotary pump and driven via a magneto coupling.