ABSTRACT
The modern era of mechanical circulatory assistance (MCA) began in the early 1950s when cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) was first used to support patients during open-heart operations for the repair of congenital heart defects. As the field of cardiac surgery evolved throughout the 1960s, the need for mechanical support able to provide short-and long-term assistance became evident. Different attempts to develop a durable ventricular-assist device and later a total artificial heart during that decade were conducted with only modest success, diverting efforts to the design of short-term temporary support devices with the intention to sustain patients with cardiogenic shock (CS), avoiding organ failure, and providing time for recovery of the myocardial function.
