Terrorist Attack Delays Implant of Artificial Heart

On September 13, surgeons at Jewish Hospital in Louisville, KY (USA) successfully implanted the second self-contained artificial heart, called AbioCor, in a patient with end-stage heart disease. Participants say the procedure went smoother than the first transplant, which took place in July. The new patient, Tom Christerson, is doing well, and his kidneys have already showed significant improvement, according to his doctors.

The operation had been scheduled to take place on September 12, the day following the terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington, DC (USA). However, one of the surgeons involved, Dr. Robert Dowling, had gone to Washington to deliver a report and could not fly back because the airport was shut down. The determined doctor walked several miles into northern Virginia and then hired a car and driver to take him to Louisville, arriving in the early hours of the next morning. The surgical team decided that Dr. Dowling needed a rest before the procedure so they waited until the next day to perform the operation.

The AbioCor artificial heart was developed by Abiomed (Danvers, MA, USA; www.abiomed.com), which has received permission from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to implant the device at four other U.S. medical centers.




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