An intravascular blood pump comprises a catheter, a rotor, a housing in which the rotor is housed and a flexible drive shaft extending through the catheter and rotatably supported in a proximal bearing located proximally of the rotor. The proximal bearing comprises a bearing sleeve and an outer bearing ring. The bearing sleeve comprises a proximal portion located proximally of the outer bearing ring, the proximal portion of the bearing sleeve forming an axial bearing with a proximal surface of the outer bearing ring. The bearing sleeve further comprises a distal portion extending from the proximal portion of the bearing sleeve distally into the outer bearing ring, wherein the distal portion of the bearing sleeve forms a radial bearing with the outer bearing ring.

The invention relates to a fluid pump device, in particular for the medical application, with a compressible pump housing and rotor, as well as with an actuation means which runs in the sleeve and on whose end the fluid pump is arranged. In order to utilize all possibilities of a space-saving arrangement of the respective pump housing of the rotor, which is compressible per se, and as the case may be, a bearing arrangement, the mentioned elements are displaceable to one another in the axial direction compared to an operation position. In particular these elements may be end-configured by way of an axial movement of the drive shaft after the assembly.

The invention relates to a fluid pump device, in particular for the medical application, with a compressible pump housing and rotor, as well as with an actuation means which runs in the sleeve and on whose end the fluid pump is arranged. In order to utilize all possibilities of a space-saving arrangement of the respective pump housing of the rotor, which is compressible per se, and as the case may be, a bearing arrangement, the mentioned elements are displaceable to one another in the axial direction compared to an operation position. In particular these elements may be end-configured by way of an axial movement of the drive shaft after the assembly.

A partially deformable impeller has at least two blades, wherein a periphery of each blade is deformable, the periphery being an outermost 5 to 20 percent of a width of the blade. In some embodiments, a catheter blood pump incorporates the partially deformable impeller.

An impeller includes a hub and a blade supported by the hub. The impeller has a stored configuration in which the blade is compressed so that its distal end moves towards the hub, and a deployed configuration in which the blade extends away from the hub. The impeller may be part of a pump for pumping fluids, such as blood, and may include a cannula having a proximal portion with a fixed diameter, and a distal portion with an expandable diameter. The impeller may reside in the expandable portion of the cannula. The cannula may have a compressed diameter which allows it to be inserted percutaneously into a patient. Once at a desired location, the expandable portion of the cannula may be expanded and the impeller expanded to the deployed configuration. A flexible drive shaft may extend through the cannula for rotationally driving the impeller within the patient.

An impeller includes a hub and a blade supported by the hub. The impeller has a stored configuration in which the blade is compressed so that its distal end moves towards the hub, and a deployed configuration in which the blade extends away from the hub. The impeller may be part of a pump for pumping fluids, such as blood, and may include a cannula having a proximal portion with a fixed diameter, and a distal portion with an expandable diameter. The impeller may reside in the expandable portion of the cannula. The cannula may have a compressed diameter which allows it to be inserted percutaneously into a patient. Once at a desired location, the expandable portion of the cannula may be expanded and the impeller expanded to the deployed configuration. A flexible drive shaft may extend through the cannula for rotationally driving the impeller within the patient.

The invention relates to a fluid pump comprising at least one impeller blade (1, 1′, 1″) which is rotatable about an axis of rotation (3) and conveys a fluid in operation and comprising a support device (4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 12′, 13, 13′, 14, 14′, 15, 17) which supports the at least one impeller blade (1, 1′, 1″) in at least one support region, wherein the support device is changeable between a first state in which the rotor is radially compressed and a second state in which the rotor is radially expanded; and wherein at least one impeller blade extends at least partly radially inwardly with respect to the axis of rotation (3) from the support region/support regions in the radially expanded state of the rotor.

To provide a simple embodiment of a rotor for a fluid pump which is nevertheless very flexible in handling and compressible, in accordance with the invention a conveying blade is provided having at least two struts and a membrane spanned between them in the expanded state, wherein the struts each have at least one joint, in particular more than one joint, which enables an angling in a first direction in a first movement plane and bounds an overelongation beyond an elongation angle of in particular 180° in the opposite second direction. In particular when a plurality of joints are provided at the struts, they, and with them the conveying blades, are particularly flexible for simple compressibility.

To provide a simple embodiment of a rotor for a fluid pump which is nevertheless very flexible in handling and compressible, in accordance with the invention a conveying blade is provided having at least two struts and a membrane spanned between them in the expanded state, wherein the struts each have at least one joint, in particular more than one joint, which enables an angling in a first direction in a first movement plane and bounds an overelongation beyond an elongation angle of in particular 180° in the opposite second direction. In particular when a plurality of joints are provided at the struts, they, and with them the conveying blades, are particularly flexible for simple compressibility.

Apparatus and methods are described including a blood pump that includes at least one motor configured to be disposed outside a body of a subject, a catheter, a proximal impeller disposed on the catheter and configured to pump blood by rotating, and a distal impeller disposed on the catheter. The distal impeller is configured to pump blood by rotating and is disposed on the catheter distally to the proximal impeller such that longitudinal centers of the proximal and distal impellers are separated from each other by at least 3 cm. Other applications are also described.