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4.0 Emergencies and Alarms
4.1 Handling an Emergency
Emergencies may occur with your HeartWare
™
HVAD
™
System, with or without an
alarm. A back-up controller and charged batteries must be available at all times. The
controller should be exchanged if it fails.
For information on how to change the controller, see Section 4.9.
Call your clinician immediately if you notice a sudden change in how your pump
works, feels or sounds (even if there is no alarm). Emergencies may also be related to
how you feel. If there is an emergency such as an urgent or life-threatening problem,
call your local emergency medical services and then your clinician, if possible.
Contact your clinician for any of the following conditions:
• Numbness, tingling or weakness in any limb
• Blurred vision or speech problems
• Shortness of breath or dizziness
• Any pain, including chest pain, unrelieved headache
• Fever (take your temperature daily)
• Any redness, swelling or drainage around the driveline exit site
• Unusual bleeding or bruising
• Unusually dark urine
• Any condition where you feel “unwell”
• High and medium controller alarms
Call Emergency Medical Services (EMS) for any of the following conditions:
• Seizure or convulsion
• Loss of consciousness
• Awake but unresponsive
• Sudden fall or collapse
• Inability to talk or move body parts
• Heart stops
• VAD stops
In case of emergency, it is safe for you to be transported by ground or air
to your implanting hospital or nearest hospital.
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