A novel arterial cannula tip includes an elongated body having an expanded four-lobe swirl inducer and a diverging diffuser. The swirl inducer presents micro-scale blood-wetting features that help to enhance the jet or core of the flow of blood sufficiently to delay the onset of turbulence and facilitate a strongly coherent blood outflow jet as it enters the cannulated artery, while the diverging diffuser reduces exit force and promotes and laminar flow which mitigates intimal vascular damage owing to high wall shear stresses at regions of jet impingement. When used in conjunction with an aortic cannula, the device facilitates neuroprotection by way of improved cerebral perfusion.
