World Heart Corporation (WorldHeart) is a global technology leader in mechanical circulatory support systems. WorldHeart provides reliable, long-term mechanical circulatory support to the broadest populstion of heart failure patients. WorldHeart is developing both pulsatile ventricular assist devices (VADs), which mimic the action of the natural heart, as well as the continuous flow Levacor VAD, which is smaller and more easily implanted.
WorldHeart's current commercial product, the Novacor Left Ventricular Assist System (LVAS), is the most durable and reliable pulsatile VAD in the world today. More than 1,700 patients with life-threatening heart failure have been supported by our leading Novacor LVAS. Approved for Bridge-To-Transplant (BTT) use in the US, and for BTT and Destination Therapy (DT) use in Europe, it is the first left ventricular assist system to provide a recipient with more than 6 years of circulatory support and continues to hold the world record for longest support on a single pulsatile device, over 5 years. A next-generation pulsatile pump, the Novacor II is currently under development. The Novacor II LVAS is designed to be just half the size of its predecessor, building on the proven Novacor technology and is intended for long-term support of patients with heart failure.
The Levacor VAD is the only bearingless, fully magnetically levitated implantable centrifugal rotary pump in clinical trials. It is an advanced, next-generation, continuous flow pump that uses magnetic levitation to fully suspend the spinning impeller, its only moving part, inside a compact housing, In contrast to pumps with blood or mechanical bearings, full magnetic levitation eliminates wear mechinisms within the pump and is expected to provide improved blood compatibility by allowing greater clearances and obstruction-free blood flow around the impeller. The Levacor VAD is currently in a feasibility trial in Europe.
WorldHeart products enable recipients to return to their homes, hobbies, jobs and families. WorldHeart is a public company headquartered in Oakland, California (USA), with additional offices located in Salt Lake City, Utah (USA), and Heesch (The Netherlands). Its registered office is Ottawa, Ontario (Canada). Its stock trades on the NASDAQ National Market (ticker symbol: WHRT) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (ticker symbol: WHT).
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