Hyperelastic Hybrid Membrane

For people that suffer from end stage heart failure, a heart transplant is the only curative treatment. Since donor organs are limited, patients on the waiting list or patients not eligible for organ donation often have to receive an implantable mechanical circulatory support device in order to keep them alive. However this current solution introduces certain complications to the patient, caused by the non-physiological flow velocity and shear rates these devices produce. These can damage blood cells and the contact of blood with artificial surfaces activates blood coagulation. Despite anticoagulation, thromboembolic complications are frequent and the need for a combination of antiplatelet drugs and anticoagulant treatment is the major cause for significant bleeding complications.

This project hence aims at designing a system that minimizes the current complication caused by the non-physiological conditions present in current devices. An important part of the device is a hybrid membrane that will be designed to withstand hundreds of millions of stretch cycles and shear stress from fluid flow, without the loss of its main biomechanical functionalities. The development of this hybrid membrane is conducted at various research groups, each focusing of certain design criteria of the system. Our focus is on the development of an intermediate membrane made of coated electrospun fibers with drug eluting properties, which will support healing after the implantation of the device. The whole system poses novel scientific challenges, but also opens new avenues for the realization of blood vessel constructs and ultimately a unique biomimetic blood propulsion device.