Heartfelt Innovation: India’s Cost-Effective LVAD Breakthrough!

India is on the verge of revolutionizing cardiac care by evolving low-cost left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) that would aid patients with end-stage heart failure while they await transplantation. With around 50,000 people requiring heart transplants annually and only about 200 operations done because of an acute shortage of donors, such native LVADs can also substantially reduce treatment costs and alleviate dependence on costly imported devices that cost anywhere between ₹70 lakh to ₹1 crore. The project, government-supported, is estimated to cost approximately ₹100 crore towards research and trials, with discussions ongoing for raising the funds via the Department of Science and Technology. This progress not only is likely to provide better patient care but could potentially attract medical tourists from overseas willing to take inexpensive treatment in India. It could take more than five years of development, with many Indian institutes already on board the project. 

 

Source: Economic Times