Patient Management
Importance of Identifying Right Ventricular Failure (RVF) Early
- RVF can occur after acute myocardial infarction (AMI), after durable LVAD implantation, post-cardiotomy or post-transplant
- RVF increases the risk of cardiogenic shock, high-grade atrioventricular-conduction block and in-hospital mortality1
- RVF can lead to longer ICU stays, higher short-term mortality and worsening end-organ dysfunction
Patient Management Topics
Handling Impella RP® Suction Alarms
Suction is most often caused by inadequate preload or malposition.
As with all other Impella® heart pumps, if a suction alarm occurs:
- Decrease P-level to break suction.
- Evaluate patient volume status. Maintain a positive CVP.
- Check Impella RP position and adjust as needed using chest X-ray, fluoroscopy, or echocardiography.
- When suction is resolved, return to previous P-level.
If position and preload are acceptable and suction cannot be resolved at P-2 or P-3, momentarily stop the Impella RP to break the suction event and restart immediately.
Note that this is different from handling suction alarms with other left-sided Impella heart pumps.
Online Calculators
Additional Services
Impella Connect®
Your cloud-based, remote monitoring of Impella heart pump status to help improve patient outcomes. With Impella Connect, authorized hospital staff can review cases at any time from any internet-connected device.
Clinical Support Center
Your on-call resource for 24/7 clinical and technical support. Contact the Clinical Support Center (CSC) at
1-800-422-8666 for patient management expertise to help you achieve the best possible patient outcomes.
References
- Mehta, S.R., et al. (2001). J Am Coll Cardiol, 37(1), 37-43.
NPS-1193