Better, Faster, Stronger...

[Guest SUNTZU]

Article

A New York man has been living without a pulse or heartbeat since last fall, and he's still alive thanks to some incredible new technology.

For people suffering with heart failure, a new device is now doing the work the heart no longer can.

Heart failure is often the consequence of a heart attack, and can be deadly – 300,000 Americans die every year from the condition. However, a new device, still in clinical trials, may one day change that.

It sounds unbelievable: Richard French has no pulse or heartbeat, but he's still walking around.

"Compared to where I was six months ago, I couldn't feel any better," French says.

The 54-year-old suffered a massive heart attack last fall. He had emergency bypass surgery, and woke up three weeks later to discover his heart was barely functioning.

"To be honest, I don't remember a whole lot," French says.

He was treated with the best medications, but they weren't enough, so French enrolled in a clinical trial at Montefiore Medical Center to have a device called Heartware implanted in his heart.

"It's a miniaturized device that allows support of people who are in severe heart failure, and returns them to fairly normal health," Montefiore's Dr. Daniel Goldstein says.

The device is not a permanent solution for severe heart problems – at least not yet. It's currently used as only a temporary solution while patients wait for heart transplants, but it's already proving to be a life-saver.

Two months after receiving Heartware, French returned to work.

"It's great, I mean, I can't overstate it, because the alternative to not having it is something I really can't even contemplate," French says.

French could receive a new heart as early as this year.

The clinical trials are taking place at 30 hospitals across the US. The device is already commercially available in Europe. US researchers hope to have definitive results from the trials at the end of the year, and then approach the FDA for approval.

[Sandman]

Wow. That's awesome. Sounds almost iron-manish.

[Guest Glock23ForMe]

Lets just friggin cure cancer now..

We don't need a heart, we can make those and survive... Lets get rid of this cancer mess...

[Guest jackdm3]

Lets just friggin cure cancer now..

We don't need a heart, we can make those and survive... Lets get rid of this cancer mess...

I'm not sold on our medical strength right now. My dad had a titanium valve put in that lasted a year. When they found that the sutures left a leak, it had to be replaced with a pig valve which put him into a coma and he died.

[jtluttrell]

Man-made zombies?

Diabolical!

[Guest SUNTZU]

I'm not sold on our medical strength right now. My dad had a titanium valve put in that lasted a year. When they found that the sutures left a leak, it had to be replaced with a pig valve which put him into a coma and he died.

That sucks, man. This IS just a stop gap while the man waits for a new heart.

[hardknox00001]

I'm not sold on our medical strength right now. My dad had a titanium valve put in that lasted a year. When they found that the sutures left a leak, it had to be replaced with a pig valve which put him into a coma and he died.

I'm right there with ya on this. My dad had intestinal surgury. Basically, they pulled all of his intestines out looking for a blockage, found several adhesions, fix those, fixed a hernia and stitched him up. Was looking really good, docs all happy. Lasted about a month until this just past Easter, a pulmonary embolism (clot) got him. Sad part was a few days before that, he felt he had a cramp or charlie horse as he called it in his leg. Only if any of us had thought to connect that with a possible clot.......

Seems to me that the docs would have had him on something for clot prevention

Edited May 20, 2010 by hardknox00001

[Guest Jamie]

Wow. That's awesome. Sounds almost iron-manish.

As the thread title suggests, it's more like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HofoK_QQxGc

You don't list an age, but I'm guessing that may be just a little before your time?

J.

Edited May 20, 2010 by Jamie

[Guest daybreaker]

Lets just friggin cure cancer now..

We don't need a heart, we can make those and survive... Lets get rid of this cancer mess...

+1

[nightrunner]

If anybody has seen the movie "Repo Men", that is what this reminds me of.