Following first implantations of the EXCOR^® Pediatric Ventricular Assist Device (VAD), Berlin Heart is now active in the Republic of South Korea and in Croatia. Thanks to this device, which is especially designed for children, pediatric patients with severe cardiac insufficiency can get better help.
 
On November 23rd, 2017 physicians in Seoul, South Korea implanted EXCOR^® Pediatric for the first time. The surgery was performed by Professor Young-Hwan Park and his team at Severance Children’s Hospital in Seoul. Professor Yasutaka Hirata, a skilled surgeon from the University of Tokyo, Japan, and clinical specialists from Berlin Heart assisted Professor Park. “The support of Professor Hirata and the Berlin Heart team facilitated the good result and was much more than we expected“, stated Professor Park after the successful implantation. The young patient recovered well from the surgery. Due to the biventricular cardiac support offered by the EXCOR^® VAD, he is feeling better and is quite active.

A second implantation of the device was performed in South Korea earlier this month. Since then, EXCOR^® Pediatric is supporting the heart of a baby who suffers from severe cardiac insufficiency and who was in critical condition. Both patients now wait for a suitable donor heart.  

In Zagreb, Croatia the EXCOR^® Pediatric VAD was implanted for the first time on January 5th, 2018. This first case was also very special: one day after implantation of the mechanical circulatory support, a donor organ was found. Thus, the young patient needed the device only for a few hours until the transplantation could be performed. Maik Meißner, Team Leader Clinical Affairs at Berlin Heart, recalls the situation: “Everybody was very happy that everything went well and that the patient could be transplanted so quickly. The patient is now extubated and on the way to recovery.”

About EXCOR^®

The EXCOR^® Pediatric ventricular assist device is used for mechanical assistance of the heart function in patients who suffer from end-stage heart failure. Worldwide it is the only ventricular assist device for children. The EXCOR^® system is authorized in 53 countries, including Europe, the USA, Canada and Brazil. More than 2,000 patients have been treated with EXCOR^® Pediatric in 174 heart centers in 41 countries. The device has been developed by Berlin Heart GmbH in cooperation with the German Heart Institute Berlin.

About Berlin Heart

Berlin Heart GmbH is the only company in the world that develops, manufactures and sells both implantable and external ventricular assist devices for patients of all ages and sizes with heart disease. The INCOR^®, EXCOR^® Adult und EXCOR^® Pediatric systems provide short-term and long-term support for the cardiac function and are therefore a life-saving therapy option for patients. Berlin Heart also offers clinical and technical support around the clock.