The device can be positioned close enough to the mother's heart to keep blood flowing in cases of heart failure during labor.
A new heart pump designed for mothers during childbirth is credited with saving a Utah woman's life. Doctors at Utah's Intermountain Medical Center say the pump is small enough to fit into a catheter and run through a leg artery. It was used successfully when Alyssa Barnard's heart stopped while giving birth to baby Lilly.