Suction Events During Left Ventricular Support and Ventricular Arrhythmias

Excessive ventricular unloading of the left ventricle during continuous left ventricular support can induce ventricular arrhythmias. We detected evidence supporting an increase in arrhythmic activity after suction. This turned out to be a transient effect, which vanished within 5 minutes after suction. ECG events related to suction have a sudden onset and are severe ventricular arrhythmias, which can consist of even just one extrasystolic beat, and they usually cease after clearance of suction.