An Australian man in his 40s has made history by surviving 100 days with an artificial titanium heart before receiving a donor transplant, marking a significant breakthrough in heart failure treatment, reports CNN.
The man was implanted with the BiVACOR total artificial heart at St Vincent’s Hospital Sydney in November. He became the first person in the world to be discharged from hospital with the device, which kept him alive until a donor heart became available in early March.
The BiVACOR heart
Developed by Australian bioengineer Dr Daniel Timms, the BiVACOR heart is the first fully implantable rotary blood pump designed to replace a human heart. Unlike traditional artificial hearts, it uses magnetic levitation technology to mimic natural blood flow, with a single moving part—a levitated rotor held in place by magnets—reducing wear and tear.
Timms, who created the device after his father’s death from heart disease, told CNN that said it was “exhilarating to see decades of work come to fruition.” He added, “The entire BiVACOR team is deeply grateful to the patient and his family for placing their trust in our Total Artificial Heart. Their bravery will pave the way for countless more patients to receive this lifesaving technology.”
The device was implanted in a six-hour procedure led by cardiothoracic and transplant surgeon Dr Paul Jansz. The patient, who wished to remain anonymous, recovered well and was discharged in February before receiving a donor heart in March.
Hope for heart failure patients
Heart failure affects over 23 million people worldwide, but only about 6,000 receive a donor heart each year. The BiVACOR artificial heart is designed as a bridge to transplant, helping patients survive until a donor organ is found. However, researchers hope that in the future, the device could serve as a long-term alternative to transplantation.
Professor Chris Hayward from the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute called the trial a game-changer. “The BiVACOR Total Artificial Heart ushers in a whole new ball game for heart transplants. Within the next decade, we will see the artificial heart becoming the alternative for patients who are unable to wait for a donor heart or when a donor heart is simply not available.”
The Australian government has invested AU$50 million in the Artificial Heart Frontiers Program, which is leading trials of three different devices to combat heart failure. The BiVACOR heart has already been tested in the United States under the Food and Drug Administration’s Early Feasibility Study, where five patients received the implant. The longest survival time before a transplant in those cases was 27 days, making the Australian trial the most successful so far.
!(function(f, b, e, v, n, t, s) {
function loadFBEvents(isFBCampaignActive)
if (!isFBCampaignActive)
return;
(function(f, b, e, v, n, t, s)
if (f.fbq) return;
n = f.fbq = function()
n.callMethod ? n.callMethod(...arguments) : n.queue.push(arguments);
;
if (!f._fbq) f._fbq = n;
n.push = n;
n.loaded = !0;
n.version = '2.0';
n.queue = [];
t = b.createElement(e);
t.async = !0;
t.defer = !0;
t.src = v;
s = b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];
s.parentNode.insertBefore(t, s);
)(f, b, e, 'https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/fbevents.js', n, t, s);
fbq('init', '593671331875494');
fbq('track', 'PageView');
;
function loadGtagEvents(isGoogleCampaignActive)
if (!isGoogleCampaignActive)
return;
var id = document.getElementById('toi-plus-google-campaign');
if (id)
return;
(function(f, b, e, v, n, t, s)
t = b.createElement(e);
t.async = !0;
t.defer = !0;
t.src = v;
t.id = 'toi-plus-google-campaign';
s = b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];
s.parentNode.insertBefore(t, s);
)(f, b, e, 'https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=AW-877820074', n, t, s);
;
function loadSurvicateJs(allowedSurvicateSections = []){
const section = window.location.pathname.split('/')[1]
const isHomePageAllowed = window.location.pathname === '/' && allowedSurvicateSections.includes('homepage')
if(allowedSurvicateSections.includes(section) || isHomePageAllowed)
(function(w)
function setAttributes()
var prime_user_status = window.isPrime ? 'paid' : 'free' ;
w._sva.setVisitorTraits(
toi_user_subscription_status : prime_user_status
);
if (w._sva && w._sva.setVisitorTraits)
setAttributes();
else
w.addEventListener("SurvicateReady", setAttributes);
var s = document.createElement('script');
s.src="https://survey.survicate.com/workspaces/0be6ae9845d14a7c8ff08a7a00bd9b21/web_surveys.js";
s.async = true;
var e = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0];
e.parentNode.insertBefore(s, e);
)(window);
}
window.TimesApps = window.TimesApps || ;
var TimesApps = window.TimesApps;
TimesApps.toiPlusEvents = function(config)
var isConfigAvailable = "toiplus_site_settings" in f && "isFBCampaignActive" in f.toiplus_site_settings && "isGoogleCampaignActive" in f.toiplus_site_settings;
var isPrimeUser = window.isPrime;
var isPrimeUserLayout = window.isPrimeUserLayout;
if (isConfigAvailable && !isPrimeUser)
loadGtagEvents(f.toiplus_site_settings.isGoogleCampaignActive);
loadFBEvents(f.toiplus_site_settings.isFBCampaignActive);
loadSurvicateJs(f.toiplus_site_settings.allowedSurvicateSections);
else
var JarvisUrl="https://jarvis.indiatimes.com/v1/feeds/toi_plus/site_settings/643526e21443833f0c454615?db_env=published";
window.getFromClient(JarvisUrl, function(config)
if (config)
const allowedSectionSuricate = (isPrimeUserLayout) ? config?.allowedSurvicatePrimeSections : config?.allowedSurvicateSections
loadGtagEvents(config?.isGoogleCampaignActive);
loadFBEvents(config?.isFBCampaignActive);
loadSurvicateJs(allowedSectionSuricate);
)
;
})(
window,
document,
'script',
);
About The Author
I’m JP, a 26-year-old from Odisha, India 🇮🇳 and the founder of newsxbyte.com 📰. I write articles and news on a variety of topics, including business, finance 💼, and exam updates 📚. With a passion for journalism and digital content, I strive to keep my readers informed and engaged with the latest updates and insights.
