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| Vol. 22, No. 14 |
| August 1, 2000 |
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Patient with Assist Device Receives New Heart at THI Physicians at the Texas Heart Institute and St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital have transplanted a new heart into the first study participant to receive a Jarvik 2000 left ventricular assist device. Lois Spiller, 52, lived for 79 days with the Jarvik 2000 while she waited for a donor heart, which she received on June 28.
"I am so thankful for this new heart," said Mrs. Spiller at a news conference on July 20. "The Lord has blessed me with this opportunity to return to an active life and do His will." Mrs. Spiller, who had cardiomyopathy, or an enlarged heart, was implanted with the assist device on April 10, after approval was received from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to test it for use in patients awaiting heart transplant. "Mrs. Spiller's surgery went smoothly," said Dr. O.H. Frazier, chief of cardiopulmonary transplantation and director of surgical research at the Texas Heart Institute and chief of transplant service at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital. "The heart-assist device performed extremely well and enabled her to build up her strength before undergoing her transplant." Mrs. Spiller told assembled media, hospital staff and family members that she had been conducting fairly regular activities - preparing meals, washing dishes, bathing - at home since being discharged from the hospital on July 10. "This technology has worked better than I thought it would," said Dr. Frazier. "The pump made Mrs. Spiller a better candidate for cardiac transplant by taking off enough of the work her heart was doing so the heart `thought' it was normal again." On June 13, David Lancaster, 30, became an additional participant in the Jarvik 2000 study. A native of Lubbock, Texas, Lancaster has a family history of heart disease and has been battling heart problems most of his life. In 1976 he underwent surgery for the repair of a defect in his heart, and in the early 1980's, a permanent pacemaker was implanted. Over the years he developed cardiomyopathy, and in 1997 he was evaluated as a candidate for a heart transplant. He was then put on the waiting list. Last year, he began to have problems breathing at night and had to sleep sitting up. He noticed increasing fatigue earlier this year and found walking difficult. He was then admitted to St. Luke's in May and received the Jarvik 2000 five weeks ago. "I have noticed a definite change in my health since I got the pump," said Lancaster. "I am glad to be feeling better while I wait for a new heart." Lancaster credits his religious faith for helping him endure the trials heart disease brings. "I'm just waiting now," he said. "I can feel it in my heart - as large as it is - that I will get a new one soon." A third participant in the clinical trial is also at THI awaiting transplant. To be eligible for the study, a patient must have end-stage heart failure and be on the transplant waiting list. About the size of a "C" battery, the Jarvik 2000 is a valveless, electrically powered miniature axial flow pump that pushes oxygenated blood throughout the body at a rate of up to six liters per minute (at rest, the natural heart pumps three to six liters per minute). The device is named for Dr. Robert Jarvik who has been developing it for 10 years with colleagues at THI. The Jarvik 2000 is implanted through an incision on the left side of the chest and requires use of a heart-lung machine for a short amount of time. It fits directly into the left ventricle, which may lessen problems with clotting. The outflow graft connects to the descending aorta behind the heart. The device itself is non-pulsatile, but the natural heart continues to beat and provides a pulse. The Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital is the only cardiovascular center in the U.S. conducting these clinical trials of the Jarvik 2000, which has been granted an initial investigational device exemption. Jarvik Heart, Inc., and the Texas Heart Institute have been developing the Jarvik 2000 for more than 10 years. - MAUREEN KOVACIK, ROGER WIDMEYER
©2006 Texas Medical Center E-Mail: tmcinfo@texmedctr.tmc.edu URL: http://www.tmc.edu/tmcnews/08_01_00/page_03.html |
