Ongoing national supply issue with Getinge intra-aortic balloon pumps (IABP)

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Ongoing national supply issue with Getinge intra-aortic balloon pumps (IABP)

6th June 2023

Dear colleagues,

As some of you may have already been informed, there is an ongoing national supply issue with intra-aortic balloon pumps (IABP), which has potential implications for the delivery of cardiac surgery and cardiology services throughout the country.

There are currently two main suppliers of IABPs to the national market.  From the information that we have received, Getinge Maquet / Datascope, one of the IABP catheter manufacturers for the UK market, has had supply issues since the start of the year.  However, there has been a recent alert from Getinge that has resulted in the company stopping any shipments of stock.  Teleflex, the other manufacturer, has been trying to keep up with the increased demand but now has supply issues themselves.  Enquiries are ongoing to see whether an IABP (Myosist) from a third supplier (Meril) is suitable for the UK market.

NHS England is working with SCTS, BCIS and SCPS to help support units with a contingency plan.  Further information will be released in due course but in the interim, some considerations may include:

  1. Mutual aid between regional units to share current IABP stocks, with the potential for limited incoming stocks to be coordinated through NHS Supply Chain.
  2. Reduced use of prophylactic or temporising IABPs and earlier definitive revascularisation strategies in ACS patients, where possible.
  3. Careful pre-operative planning, case selection and use of dual-consultant operating / Surgical Council MDT discussion for high-risk patients undergoing cardiac surgical intervention.
  4. Development of local and regional collaborative networks and MDT infrastructure to provide guidance regarding the use of Impella and ECMO for post-cardiotomy support where available.

We will continue to communicate with you as more information becomes available but as you will appreciate, the situation is changing daily and we are working to find a resolution as quickly as possible.

Please contact your respective professional society if you have any clinical questions.

If mutual aid options are exhausted, notification of a critical shortage can be reported to the National Supply Disruption Response team via the dedicated helpline 0800 915 9964 (freephone number in the UK) or 0207 972 1071. The line is open Monday to Friday 9am-6pm except public holidays.

Narain Moorjani                      David Hildick-Smith                             Noel Kelleher
President, SCTS                          President, BCIS                                 Chairman, SPCS