Nursing Management of Patients Requiring Acute Mechanical Circulatory Support Devices

TOPIC: The growing use of acute mechanical circulatory support devices to provide hemodynamic support that has accompanied the increasing prevalence of heart failure and cardiogenic shock, despite significant improvement in the treatment of acute myocardial infarction. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: The critical care nurse plays a crucial role in managing patients receiving acute mechanical circulatory support devices and monitoring for potential complications. PURPOSE: To review the anatomical placement and mechanics of each type of device so that nurses can anticipate patients' hemodynamic responses and avoid complications whenever possible, thereby improving patients' clinical outcomes. CONTENT COVERED: Nursing considerations regarding the intra-aortic balloon pump, the TandemHeart, the Impella, and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation.