The
first self-regulating artificial heart
In 2013, French Professor
Alain Carpentier engineered the first self-regulating artificial heart, using
biomaterials and electronic sensors. The device weighed 900g, was roughly the
same size as a real heart and could imitate its functions exactly. In a 10-hour
operation, it was successfully implanted within a 75-year-old patient at the
Georges Pompidou European Hospital in Paris.
Permanent artificial hearts
had been around since 1982, with similar inventions that preceded them going
back to the 1940s. Unlike previous versions, however, Carpentier's invention
was the first to be completely artificial and self-regulating. Electronic
sensors and microprocessors could monitor blood pressure and flow in real time
– instantly adjusting the pulse rate – while a "pseudo-skin" made of
biosynthetic, microporous materials could prevent blood clots, which had been a
major issue in the past.
By 2015, after a period of
clinical trials, it is available within the European Union, priced between
140,000 and 180,000 euros (about US$190,000 to $250,000).
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