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The beginning
Willliem Johan “Pim” Kloff, the creator of the artificial heart and kidney, which eventually led to the creation of dialysis (used to cleaning the blood, replacing or helping the kidney) and the membrane oxygenator (which gave the red blood cells oxygen to transport throughout the body). -
Prototype
Research begins and design is completed of the prototype of an artificial heart. -
First Trials
The first trials for an artificial heart is created and tested. There were many failures until the success of a dog heart transplant which lasted for 90 minutes. The model used (pictured) was a collaboration between Dr. Kloff and Dr. Akutsu. -
Patent
While Dr. Kloff was at the University of Utah, he was handed down the patent to the artificial heart by Paul Winchell, who was the primary holder of the patent. Winchell and Dr. Heimlich (also the creator or the heimlich maneuver) worked together on the patent. -
First Heart Transplant
Dr. Christiaan Barnard performs the first heart transplant. This takes place in Cape Town, South Africa. The test was successful, but only for 18 days. -
Second Trial
Another trial is executed on Tony the Calf. With the artificial heart, he was able to live for 30 days. The model used for this experiment was an earlier version of the “Kloff Total Artificial Heart”. -
Third Trial
Another successful trial was executed on another calf. With the artificial heart, the calf was able to live for 184 days. The model used in this experiment is called the “Jarvik 5 Total Artificial Heart”. -
Last Animal Transplant
The last animal transplant with the artificial heart. With the artificial heart, the calf was able to live for 168 days. The model used in this calve is the earlier model used in the first human transplant, the “Jarvik 5”. After the success of this experiment, the FDA approved of this practice and asked Dr. Kloff to test the hearts on a human. -
First Artificial Heart Transplant
The first artificial heart was transplanted into a living person, 61 year old Dr. Barney Clark. And it was a success due to the model used as the artificial heart. Which was called the Jarvik-7, created by Dr. Jarvik. While Dr. Jarvik created the physical artificial heart, credit for the idea goes to Dr. Kloff. -
Use of Artificial Heart Improves
During this year, the artificial heart is remodeled and improved. Another version of the heart is created called the “Pheonix Heart”. Also during this year, the heart served as a gateway for patients who were waiting their donor heart. Doctor’s would “install” an artificial heart to prolong the patient’s life. And after the donor heart arrived, doctors would “uninstall” the heart and replace it with the donor heart. -
Change in the FDA regulations
The artificial heart created prior to this date did not have meet the regulations. So, the FDA shut down the operations of the continuation of the heart's improvement and the clinical trial was denied. -
The creation of the New Artificial Heart
To save their invention, the core industries who participated in the research decided to create another company. After remodeling the heart, the Jarvik 7 is renamed the CardioWest Artificial Heart. -
The FDA approves the clinical study of the Total Artificial Heart
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100th Implant of the Artificial Heart
After 1997, Europe and Canada also approved of the usage of the heart. There were many surgeries performed saving the lives of many people. The 100th implant of the heart occurred in the La Pitie Hospital in Paris, France. This is a milestone for the artificial heart. -
Officially eligible
Through all the trials, the CardioWest Artificial Heart is officially the only FDA-regulated and FDA-approved heart. And the heart can officially be used as a gateway AND a permanent structure in the body. This means that thhe heart can either be a permanent sugery or it can be used to create time for a patient who is either waiting on a donor heart or is needed during any surgery. And the artificial heart is legally and officially given the name "CardioWest Total Artificial Heart". -
Sources #1
Blakeslee, Sandra. "Willem Kolff, Doctor Who Invented Kidney and Heart Machines, Dies at 97." The New York Times. The New York Times, 12 Feb. 2009. Web. 15 May 2017. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/13/health/13kolff.html. -
Source #2
SynCardia. "Artificial Heart Timeline." SynCardia Systems, Inc. SynCardia, n.d. Web. 15 May 2017. http://www.syncardia.com/resources/artificial-heart-timeline.html. -
Source #3
Starr, Albert . "Artificial heart valves." Development of artificial heart valves. Animal Research, n.d. Web. 15 May 2017. http://www.animalresearch.info/en/medical-advances/timeline/artificial-heart-valves/.
