Resuscitation and recovery from acute right ventricular failure using a percutaneous right ventricular assist device.

A number of techniques have been proposed for circulatory support in patients with severe right heart failure. We report on a patient with right ventricular (RV) infarction complicated by cardiogenic shock, who was resuscitated by the novel use of a percutaneous right ventricular assist device. The moribund patient had striking hemodynamic and clinical improvement after placement of a right atrial to pulmonary artery assist circuit. RV decompression for 3 days was accompanied by recovery of contractile function, and the patient was successfully weaned from the device. Future trials are needed to assess the effectiveness of the percutaneous ventricular assist device in patients with RV failure. Copyright 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc.