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What This Guide Helps With
Troubleshooting AutoCAT drive, helium, pneumatic, pressure, or balloon inflation faults from external setup or supply issues.
Step-by-Step Troubleshooting
Ensure Patient Safety First
Confirm whether the AutoCAT is actively supporting a patient.
If the pump is in clinical use and there is a drive system, pneumatic, or balloon inflation failure, notify clinical staff immediately and have a backup IABP available.
Expected outcome: Patient support is maintained before Clinical Engineering begins troubleshooting.
If the issue affects active balloon pumping, do not continue extended troubleshooting at the bedside. Remove the device from patient use when clinically safe.
Confirm the Reported Failure
Review the reported alarm, displayed message, or symptom.
Common reported behaviors may include:
- Drive pressure fault
- Helium pressure fault
- Balloon not inflating
- Poor augmentation
- Repeated fill or purge issue
- Pneumatic leak alarm
- Pump cycling but no effective balloon movement
- Abnormal drive noise
Expected outcome: The complaint is identified as a pneumatic or drive-related problem, not a trigger, ECG, arterial pressure, or display issue.
Check the Helium Supply
Verify that the helium cylinder is installed, open, seated correctly, and not empty or near empty.
Confirm that the cylinder connection is secure and that the regulator area does not show signs of leakage or damage.
Expected outcome: The AutoCAT has an adequate helium supply available for balloon inflation.
If replacing or reseating the helium cylinder resolves the fault, stop and document the correction.
Inspect the External Pneumatic Connections
Check the balloon catheter tubing connection at the pump.
Confirm that the connection is fully seated, not cross-threaded, loose, kinked, cracked, contaminated, or partially disconnected.
Expected outcome: The external pneumatic path is intact and properly connected.
If correcting a loose or kinked connection clears the alarm and the device passes functional checks, stop.
Verify the Correct Catheter and Setup
Confirm that the catheter size and setup match the clinical configuration selected on the pump.
Make sure the catheter connection and any required adapters are appropriate for the AutoCAT system.
Expected outcome: The pump is not attempting to drive an incorrectly configured or incompatible pneumatic load.
Look for External Tubing Restrictions
Inspect the catheter tubing and helium line for compression, tight bends, clamp points, or damage caused by bed rails, transport movement, or cable routing.
Expected outcome: Gas flow is not restricted by an external obstruction.
If the tubing restriction is corrected and the pump resumes normal operation, stop and document.
Check for Visible Signs of Leakage
Listen for hissing near the helium cylinder, regulator connection, catheter connection, and external tubing.
Look for loose fittings, damaged tubing, or connections disturbed during transport or repositioning.
Expected outcome: No external helium or pneumatic leak is found.
If an external leak is found, correct the connection or replace the affected external accessory if allowed by facility policy.
Check Power Stability
Confirm the AutoCAT is connected to a known good hospital-grade AC outlet.
Verify the power cord is fully seated and that the device is not intermittently switching between AC and battery during operation.
Expected outcome: Pneumatic or drive faults are not being caused by unstable power.
Review Recent Movement or Transport
Ask whether the fault appeared after transport, cylinder replacement, catheter connection, cleaning, storage, or setup.
Inspect external connections that may have been disturbed.
Expected outcome: A recent handling-related cause is identified or ruled out.
Restart Only When Safe and Appropriate
If the device is not connected to a patient, power the AutoCAT down and restart it according to normal user-level operation.
Observe whether the pneumatic or drive fault returns during startup or readiness checks.
Expected outcome: The device either clears the temporary fault or repeats the failure.
If the fault repeats, do not continue cycling the device.
Perform a Basic Functional Check Off Patient
With the device removed from clinical use, perform an approved facility-level operational check using appropriate test setup and accessories.
Confirm whether the pump builds pressure, completes startup checks, and operates without pneumatic alarms.
Expected outcome: The device demonstrates safe, repeatable pneumatic performance before being returned to service.
Do Not Open the Pneumatic or Drive System at the Bedside
Do not disassemble internal drive components, valves, compressors, solenoids, regulators, or pneumatic assemblies during bedside troubleshooting.
Expected outcome: Troubleshooting remains safe, controlled, and appropriate for Clinical Engineering field response.
If the Problem Persists
If the drive system or pneumatic failure continues after helium supply, tubing, catheter connection, setup, power, and external leak checks have been ruled out, the issue is likely internal.
The AutoCAT should be:
- Removed from service
- Labeled Out of Service
- Sent for repair, bench evaluation, or vendor-supported service
Knowing when to stop is proper troubleshooting. A drive or pneumatic fault on an IABP can directly affect balloon inflation and patient support, so unresolved faults should not be cleared casually or returned to service without verification.
Clinical Use Tip
Do not troubleshoot a pneumatic or drive failure on an active patient unless clinical staff confirm it is safe and patient support is stable. If balloon inflation is unreliable, move the patient to another verified IABP or follow the facility’s emergency support process before continuing.
Work Order Documentation (CCR Method)
CCR = Complaint, Cause, Resolution
Complaint
What was reported by the clinical staff.
Example:
"Clinical staff reported the Teleflex AutoCAT displayed a pneumatic drive fault and the balloon was not inflating consistently during setup."
Cause
What was observed during troubleshooting.
Example:
"Clinical Engineering found the helium cylinder connection was not fully seated, causing insufficient drive pressure."
Resolution
What action was taken.
Example:
"Reseated the helium cylinder, verified external pneumatic connections, completed functional testing, and returned the AutoCAT to service after no further alarms were observed."
Helpful Details to Include (If Known)
- Exact alarm or displayed fault message
- Whether the fault occurred during startup, setup, transport, or active pumping
- Helium cylinder status
- Cylinder replaced or reseated
- Catheter tubing inspected
- External pneumatic connections checked
- Any visible kinks, leaks, or loose fittings
- Power source tested
- Abnormal pump sounds
- Unusual heat or smell
- Whether the fault repeated after restart
- Final device status
Final Thought
Drive system and pneumatic failures on an intra-aortic balloon pump should be handled with a patient-safety-first mindset. Start with helium supply, external tubing, setup, power, and connection checks before suspecting internal failure. If the fault remains unresolved, remove the pump from service and document the complaint, cause, and resolution clearly.
That is successful troubleshooting.