Sarns centrifugal pump for repair of thoracic aortic injury: case reports.

A new centrifugal pump (Sarns), originally designed for ventricular assist, was successfully used in two patients during repair of traumatic pseudoaneurysm of the descending thoracic aorta. The distal thoracic aorta was perfused without heparinization to avoid spinal cord and visceral ischemia, reduce afterload on the heart, and avoid clamp injury to the aorta. Distal mean aortic pressure was maintained above 50 mm Hg with a mean pump flow of 1.75 liter/minute. Proposed structural advantages of the Sarns centrifugal pump for perfusion of the distal thoracic aorta without heparin are resistance to thrombus formation, air embolus, and hemolysis.