About “Taylor-made Cardiac Support Net”

Research background

• ・For patients with repeated exacerbations of heart failure for which drug treatment has not been successful, heart transplantation is the only and final treatment after a certain point.
• ・However, the number of patients who can actually receive a heart transplant is limited, and a ventricular assist device is often used during the waiting period. In that case, complications such as blood clots and infections also occur considerably.
• ・As a treatment method other than drugs, development of alternative and combination therapies that have the effect of suppressing the progression of heart dilation and heart failure and meanwhile can be widely applied is desired.
• ・Development of medical devices for alternative and combination therapies has been carried out in Europe and the United States, but none have been successfully put into practical use.
• ・At iCorNet Laboratory, we have focused on the fact that cardiac remodeling is the root cause of exacerbation of heart failure, and have been researching and developing therapeutic devices which effectively suppress cardiac remodeling.
• ・Although it has already been known in previous studies that the method of wrapping the heart with a net has a certain effect. However, it has also found a method of simply compressing the ventricle with equal force inhibits the diastolic function of the right ventricle and the effect of improving heart failure cannot be obtained.

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Our Tailor-made Cardiac Support Net is a new treatment for dilated cardiomyopathy that solves those problems.

Overview and features of Taylor-made Cardiac Support Net

• 1. Create a 3D heart model from patient's heart image
• 2. Create a computer knitting pattern from a 3D heart model
• 3. Using computer simulation technology, predict the cardiac function and efficiency when wearing the cardiac support net and design the optimum net shape and physical properties.
  →Corresponds to diurnal fluctuations in circulating blood volume
  →Possible to select suitable patient and predict postoperative cardiac function.
• 4. Knit a 3D shape net without sewing by a computer-controlled knitting machine.
  →No intraoperative adjustment is required by knitting the cardiac support net from the patient's heart image data in advance.
  →Minimally invasive (shortening operation time, small incision approach)
• 5. Avoid right ventricular diastolic dysfunction
  →Sufficient pressure for the left ventricle
  →Reliable heart remodeling prevention

Our tailor-made net is precisely manufactured according to the individual image data of each patient, and it requires about one month (obtaining the image data to the completion).