In Australia, a man lived for 100 days with an artificial titanium heart, awaiting a donor transplant. This is a record term for the use of this technology, CNN reports, writes UNN.
Details
The man, who is about 40 years old, received the implant in November last year during an operation at St. Vincent's Hospital in Sydney. In February, he became the first person in the world to be able to leave the hospital with this device. The heart supported his life until a donor heart appeared earlier this month.
According to a statement from St. Vincent's Hospital, Monash University and BiVACOR, the company that developed the device, the patient had severe heart failure and is currently recovering well. Experts note that this success demonstrates the potential of an artificial heart as a long-term solution for patients with heart failure.
The BiVACOR Total Artificial Heart (TAH) has only one moving part – a rotor held in place by magnets. It replaces both ventricles of the heart and pumps blood to the body and lungs. The technology is still being tested and has not yet been approved for general use.
BiVACOR founder, bioengineer Daniel Timms, who developed the device after his father's death from heart disease, called the breakthrough "the fruits of decades of work".
The device is being tested in the United States as part of an FDA study, where five patients have been successfully operated on. The number of participants is expected to expand to 15.
This implant became the first in a series planned by Monash University as part of the Artificial Heart Frontiers program, which has a budget of 50 million Australian dollars. Scientists hope that in the next decade, an artificial heart will become a real alternative for those who cannot wait for a donor organ.