DEVELOPMENT OF AN ISOLATED PERFUSION CIRCUIT WITH DOUBLE BYPASS USINGAUTOMATIC BLOOD PUMPS

Isolated perfusion of the liver is a useful and promising therapeutic method for various hepatic diseases, However, conventional techniques using a roller pump require a large priming volume and cannot run at t he low flow rate without complications. These disadvantages do not all ow the use of conventional techniques in smaller pediatric patients. T he authors solved these problems successfully for the first time by us ing unique sac-type air-driven automatic blood pumps with an oxygenato r primed with a blood volume of 65 mi in the total circuit. The useful ness of these blood pumps for fiver perfusion was evaluated in small a nimals weighing 3.5-6.0 kg, A hepatic perfusion circuit was establishe d between the portal vein and the inferior vena cava. The blood pumps worked well without any trouble, and stable flow could be maintained, No hepatocellular damage or anaerobiosis of the liver was observed at a hepatic perfusion flow rate of 20 ml/min/kg. Isolated liver perfusio n using these blood pumps can be applied in infants and young children .