Extracorporeal mechanical pulsatile pump and its significance for myocardial function recovery and circulatory support.

The authors performed 12 acute (on dogs) and 12 chronic (on calves) assisted circulation experiments with the use of the total extracorporeal mechanical pump (TEMP) artificial ventricles. The functional morphological research of the myocardium suggests that in addition to the possibility of the biological heart function full replacement, the artificial ventricle also helps recover damages in both the myocardial infarction and distal zones. The critical time period up to the onset of artificial circulation is not more than 2 h, and after that myocardial changes are irreversible.