Development of an Optical Detector of Thrombus Formation on the Pivot Bearing of a Rotary Blood Pump

Continuous optical monitoring of thrombus formation in extracorporeal mechanical circulatory support (EMCS) devices will contribute to safe, long-term EMCS. A clinically applicable optical detector must be able to distinguish among the optical characteristics of oxygen saturation (SaO(2)), hematocrit (Hct), and thrombus formation. In vitro studies of spectral changes at wavelengths from 400 to 900 nm associated with SaO(2), Hct, and thrombus formed around the top pivot bearing of a Gyro C1E3 pump were conducted. Fresh porcine blood anticoagulated with sodium citrate was circulated in a mock circuit using the pump. The SaO(2), Hct, and anticoagulation activity were altered using an oxygenator, autologous plasma, and calcium chlorite injection, respectively. Light from a xenon lamp was guided by an incident fiber perpendicularly fixed on the top bearing. This light was scattered by blood pooled between the male and female pivots. The detection fiber was perpendicularly fixed against the incident fiber, and the side-scattered light was detected and guided to a spectrophotometer. As a result, light at two different wavelengths, 420 and 810 nm, was identified as suitable for thrombus detection because it was negligibly influenced by SaO(2) and was able to detect the optical characteristics of fibrin. The light at these two wavelengths responded more quickly to thrombus formation than the inlet or outlet pressure, and flow rate change. The optical changes showed the changes in Hct around the top pivot bearing, which is caused by the reduction in density of fibrin-trapped red blood cells (RBCs) due to the RBCs being swept away by the surrounding blood flow. The proposed method was also able to detect fibrin production by extracting subtle differences in the optical characteristics between the Hct and thrombus formation.