US Patent 7338521 Low profile inlet for an implantable blood pump

A low profile pump inlet for an implantable blood pump is disclosed. The low profile pump inlet has an inflow diffuser for attachment to a conduit bearing an inflow of a fluid such as blood and an outflow orifice in fluid connection with the diffuser. The outflow orifice is configured to direct the fluid from the diffuser into a pump such as an implantable blood pump. The low profile pump inlet helps to suppress the effects of upstream pipe bends on the blood traveling through the inlet. The inlet thus provides a flow having a substantially uniform velocity profile into the blood pump.