Australian man survives 105 days with artificial heart

An Australian man in his 40s has become the first patient in the world to be discharged from hospital fitted with a completely artificial heart, reports the South China Morning Post.

The man, who suffered from severe heart failure, lived with the BiVacor Total Artificial Heart, a blood pump made of titanium, for more than 100 days before receiving a heart transplant on Thursday last week.

In a six-hour operation on November 22, he was fitted with the artificial heart at Sydney’s St Vincent’s Hospital as a bridging measure while he waited for a donor heart to become available, the first time such an operation was performed in Australia.

By early February, he could be discharged while fitted with the device. He returned early this month to receive a donor heart, 105 days since obtaining the implant.

“The patient holds the record for the longest time a BiVacor patient has gone from implant to transplant, a major step toward the future of artificial heart technology,” St Vincent’s said in a statement.

“With this innovation, the long-term goal is for patients to live with the device indefinitely without needing a transplant.”

Dr. Paul Jansz, the cardiothoracic and transplant surgeon who implanted the mechanical heart, called the device a “complete game-changer”.

Five patients received the BiVacor device in the United States between July and November last year as part of an early feasibility study by the Food and Drug Administration, but none of them were discharged with the implant.

All five were discharged after receiving a heart transplant.

The BiVacor implant uses magnetic levitation technology – the same principle used in high-speed trains – to pump blood to the pulmonary and systemic circulations.

According to its makers, it is suitable for most men and women and can provide enough cardiac output for an adult male undergoing exercise.