The Dublin-based medical solution company Medtronic has received clearance from the FDA and is now launching the first dialysis machine suitable for neonatal children. This new technology aims to lower morality rates and the exposure to other risks.
Neonatal children are at high risk for kidney injury and fluid overflow. These risks are heightened after cardiac surgeries and they are often treated with machines designed for adults. Medtronic’s Carpedium hemodialysis system is designed specifically for patients between 5.5 and 22 pounds or 2.5 to 10 kilograms. This machine allows for continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) with blood filtering outside of the body. With machines designed for adults, clinicians were required to filter small amounts of blood in the circuit. The Carpedium will filter the patients’ blood through a hermo filter with new scales and calibrated pumps to reduce the risk for low blood pressure and ensure stability.
This is the first machine in the United States to be approved for pediatric uses. In May, Medtronic gained clearance and since July, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center has utilized the Carpedium system. Earlier technologies were designed to treat patients of at least 44 pounds or 20 kilograms, but the new technology aims to reduce the morality rate which is now up to 60%.
There is a relatively low number of patients who require this care as an estimated 10,000 children have acute kidney injury and 2,000 of them could use this new option. Medtronic gained the Carpedium system through its Bellco acquisition and the technology was designed in Italy and Western Europe. Medtronic is the first to launch a machine that caters to critically ill infants and it will be offered to hospitals, pediatric care units, and other facilities through a controlled rollout.
With the launch of this new technology Medtronic works to transform pediatric care for neonatal infants who in the past have been treated with risks and unsuitable equipment. The Carpedium system provides new means of treating the critically ill infants and works to reduce the risks associated with kidney injuries and cardiac surgery.
