The Intra-Aortic Balloon PumpGanesh Gajanan 1, Emmanouil S. Brilakis 2, Jolanta M. Siller-Matula 3,4,5, Ronald L. Zolty 1, Poonam Velagapudi 1
1Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center, 2Minneapolis Heart Institute, 3Department of Internal Medicine II, Division of Cardiology, Medical University of Vienna, 4Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology, Medical University of Warsaw, Center for Preclinical Research and Technology CEPT, 5Department of Internal Medicine II, Division of Cardiology, Medical University of Vienna
We describe the steps for the percutaneous implantation of the intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP), a mechanical circulatory support device. It acts by counterpulsation, inflating at the onset of diastole, augmenting diastolic aortic pressure and improving coronary blood flow and systemic perfusion, and deflating before systole, reducing left ventricular afterload.