The Weil Institute & Abiomed: Teaming Up to Restart the Heart
According to the American Heart Association, more than 350,000 cardiac arrests occur outside of the hospital each year. (Image source: Shutterstock)
ANN ARBOR, MI — Critical care takes a team, and when academia and industry combine forces, this teamwork can bring about life-saving results. At the Max Harry Weil Institute for Critical Care Research and Innovation, the Pre-Clinical Critical Care Laboratory (PC3L) is collaborating with medical device maker Abiomed, Inc. to examine the potential of using Abiomed’s Impella CP® left ventricular assist device as a resuscitative strategy for sudden cardiac arrest. This project unites Abiomed’s circulatory support technology with the Weil Institute’s unique resources and expertise in a winning combination that could lead to enhanced management of cardiac arrest and improved patient outcomes.
Most cardiac arrest deaths are caused by failure to achieve what is known as “return of spontaneous circulation” (ROSC), in which the patient’s heart is unable to resume a sustained rhythm capable of pumping blood to the brain, lungs, and other organs. Through administering CPR and defibrillation, rescuers are trying to achieve ROSC by getting the heart restarted.
Robert Neumar, MD, PhD (left) and Hakam Tiba, MD (right) are leading the new study.
In recent years, clinical studies have shown that using the Impella CP® device during CPR provides more effective circulatory support and an enhanced rate of ROSC over standard CPR. Under the leadership of Dr. Robert Neumar, Professor and Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine, and Dr. Hakam Tiba, PC3L Director and Assistant Research Professor of Emergency Medicine, the new study proposes building upon this method by incorporating a technique called “temporary aortic occlusion”.
The aorta is the main artery that carries blood away from the heart and into the body. Temporarily occluding—or pinching shut—the part of the aorta that delivers blood to the lower body creates a smaller circuit that diverts blood flow to the heart and brain.
“Our laboratory has demonstrated that occlusion of the descending aorta during CPR increased blood flow to the heart and carotid arteries, as well as increased the rate of ROSC,” noted Dr. Tiba. The team’s goal will be to test whether adding temporary aortic occlusion to Impella CP® resuscitation will have the same benefit following prolonged cardiac arrest.
“There is already published evidence in humans that Impella CP® can be an effective strategy to treat sudden cardiac arrest when it does not respond to standard therapies,” said Dr. Neumar. “Our work sets out to optimize the effectiveness of Impella resuscitation in prolonged cardiac arrest with the goal of saving more lives.”
"Industry research partnerships with translational research enterprises like the Weil Institute are ideal because they result in laser focus to answer critically relevant questions that may have near-term impact on patients"
Kevin Ward, MD
Executive director, Weil Institute
While the PC3L’s work with Abiomed is still in its early stages, it stands as a prime example of how partnerships between academia and industry can foster transformative and possibly life-saving results. Weil Institute executive director Dr. Kevin Ward, Professor of Emergency Medicine and Biomedical Engineering, spoke on the potential impact of such a keen collaboration.
“Industry research partnerships with translational research enterprises like the Weil Institute are ideal because they result in laser focus to answer critically relevant questions that may have near-term impact on patients,” said Dr. Ward.
For the PC3L and Abiomed, what the team learns here could pave the way to new knowledge and enhanced strategies for the management of a critical health emergency that claims 475,000 lives in America each year. The results of the study will also inform the team’s future research into improving long-term survival and neurologic outcomes post-cardiac arrest. While there is no golden ticket to solving cardiac arrest yet, this powerful partnership between academia and industry aims to give more hearts a fighting chance.
DISCLOSURES
The study featured in this article was funded by Abiomed Inc.’s research grants program.
About the Weil Institute
The team at the Max Harry Weil Institute for Critical Care Research and Innovation is dedicated to pushing the leading edge of research to develop new technologies and novel therapies for the most critically ill and injured patients. Through a unique formula of innovation, integration, and entrepreneurship, their multi-disciplinary teams of health providers, basic scientists, engineers, and data scientists, commercialization coaches, donors and industry partners are taking a boundless approach on re-imagining every aspect of critical care medicine. For more information, please visit www.weilinstitute.org.