Successful treatment of a Novacor LVAD malfunction without repeat sternotomy.

Implantable left-ventricular assist devices have been remarkably free of mechanical failures. We describe an uncommon Novacor N100 PCq LVAS malfunction caused by an internal short circuit of the device due to urine aspiration via the vent line. Device replacement was managed via a subcostal approach without sternotomy. Patient recovery was uneventful and successful transplantation was performed one month after the device exchange.