I'm Shelby Cullinan and this is a health feature.
A new, smaller version of an already-approved artificial heart recently made a big impact
on one patient's life.
A patient at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center became the first in the world to receive
a successful heart transplant after receiving a smaller version of the experimental Total
Artificial Heart.
The 50cc SynCardia temporary Total Artificial Heart is a temporary heart designed for use
by smaller patients.
According to a University of California, Los Angeles, press release - it is a "smaller
investigational version of the larger 70cc SynCardia heart, which was approved for use
in people awaiting a transplant by the Federal Food and Drug Administration in 2004 and has
been used by more than 1,440 patients worldwide."
These artificial hearts are designed to help patients who are awaiting a heart transplant
due to heart failure.
The artificial hearts are temporary.
They are removed when the patient receives a real heart via a transplant.
Dr. Mario Deng, professor of medicine and MEDICAL DIRECTOR of the Advanced Heart Failure,
Mechanical Support and Heart Transplant program at UCLA, has more on the 44-year-old patient
and the remarkable surgery that helped her.
"If I talk about her - this 44-year-old woman's clinical course - it is remarkable as she
was an emergency -transferred patient from our colleagues and partners at Kaiser Permanente
Southern California.
She had a very advanced heart failure syndrome.
She required a short-term VA ECMO - which is a short-term percutaneous assist heart
pump for 12 hours.
Next step after, our team identified her as a heart transplantation candidate.
She required immediately a so-called "Total Artificial Heart".
The Total Artificial Heart replaces both the left and the right side of the heart.
And can be used for a period up to months to years.
The remarkable aspect in her situation was that she was too small for the currently FDA-approved
Total Artificial Heart.
Fortunately, the FDA has a pending / waiting for approval for a smaller Total Artificial
Heart.
The so-called 50cc Total Artificial Heart.
The UCLA team asked for a one-time humanitarian device exemption - it was granted.
So we could, within 12 hours of the patient's arrival at UCLA, proceed with this smaller
Total Artificial Heart.
This therefore became the first Total Artificial Heart 50cc in the Western United States and
then ultimately 3 weeks later - the first Total Artificial Heart of this small size
that led to a successful heart transplantation".
Dr. Deng adds that it was important to make sure the patient herself fully and completely
understood this option.
He also explains the patient needed to reach a decision whether or not an artificial heart
was something she was ok with, within a 24 hour period.
"She needed to understand this option within 24 hours.
And then she needed to make a decision about this.
At UCLA, we have a culture that tries to frame all the modern achievement in medicine in
a humanism framework.
While we not only want to heal humankind by prolonging life, improving life and alleviating
suffering but to deliver acts of kindness.
Meaning, in this moment, it was most important for us that we, as a team of white coats,
outline this option but then made sure that she, as the boss over her destiny, understood
what it meant to live with this Total Artificial Heart followed by a second surgery, the heart
transplantation and was ok with that."
Thankfully, the patient was on board.
"The patient was ok with that, she embraced the concept.
It was very important that we had our multi-disciplinary team between the physicians, meaning the cardiologists,
the surgeons, the psychiatrists, the immunologists, the infectious disease doctors but our transplant
coordinators, our mechanical circlo-support coordinators, our social workers, our psychologists
present to help her make the decision.
This is basically our conviction: only if we take her basic human right of understanding
this process seriously, then can she make the decision and only then can she benefit
from this with regard to longevity and good quality of life."
Dr. Deng is happy t​o add the patient is doing very well.
And what does this mean for the future?
A new lifesaving option for many different kinds of patients.
"The smaller size of the Total Artificial Heart has large implications.
It will allow to expand the population of advanced heart failure patients who have a
so-called biventricular failure who are small.
For example, younger recipients, typically in the age range between 10 and 18 years.
But also smaller adults, often females, to benefit from this invasive - but potentially
lifesaving - therapy."
The 50cc Total Artificial Heart is currently in an FDA-approved study.
UCLA officials said they plan to begin enrolling study patients in the near future.
Make sure to speak with your doctor about advances in the medical field that may affect
you and your condition.