NEW YORK, Dec. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- JARVIK HEART, Inc., a developer of advanced circulatory support technology, announced today an important milestone in its progress to provide a practical long term treatment for heart failure: The first patient to receive the Jarvik 2000(R) mechanical heart for lifetime use has logged his 2000th day (5 1/2 years) supported by the tiny ventricular assist device (VAD).
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The patient, 67-year-old Peter Houghton, of Birmingham, England, continues to enjoy good health, work full time, and lead an active life traveling, lecturing, and writing. Since being implanted with the Jarvik 2000 - a silent titanium axial-flow blood pump - on June 20, 2000, Mr. Houghton has recovered dramatically from severe heart failure. His natural heart has been significantly rehabilitated from its pre-operative state and has remained stable for years. It can even support him if his mechanical heart is turned off for short periods of time. However, Mr. Houghton still depends on the Jarvik 2000 to keep him alive.
More than 150 patients have received the Jarvik 2000 heart at leading hospitals in the United States, Europe, Australia, and Japan. There have been no failures of the implanted blood pump or cable in any patient to date. The Jarvik 2000's reliability is unequaled by any other VAD implanted over three years. More than 10,000 patients worldwide have received various types of heart assist devices, and of these patients, Mr. Houghton is the longest survivor continuously supported by a single device. A patient supported by the Novacor VAD has lived over six years, but only after the implanted device wore out once and was replaced.
The Jarvik 2000 has CE Mark regulatory approval in the European Union for both lifetime and bridge-to-transplant use and investigational approval for bridge-to-transplant use in the U.S., where enrollment of patients in the pivotal trial is proceeding well. The only heart assist device fully approved in the U.S. for permanent implantation is the HeartMate vented electric model. In the majority of patients, it wears out in less than 2 years.
The ultimate durability of the Jarvik 2000 remains unknown only because none has failed in any patient or in real time bench tests now ongoing for almost four years. Computer analyses predict that the bearings may last decades. Precision-fabricated from an extraordinarily hard ceramic, the blood- immersed bearings are partially magnetically suspended and are highly resistant to wear. The bearings in Mr. Houghton's mechanical heart have spun over 30 billion revolutions and continue to offer him hope of additional years of what he calls "extra life."
About JARVIK HEART, INC.
JARVIK HEART, Inc. is a privately held company that develops miniaturized heart assist devices for the treatment of severe heart failure. The company, founded in 1988, is located in Manhattan. Robert Jarvik, M.D., inventor of the Jarvik 7 and Jarvik 2000 mechanical hearts, is President and Chief Executive Officer. Marilyn vos Savant, columnist for Parade magazine, is Chief Financial Officer. Leon Hirsch, founder and former Chairman of United States Surgical Corporation, serves as Chairman of the Board.
For more information, please visit jarvikheart.com.
Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20040427/NYTU126LOGOJARVIK HEART, Inc.CONTACT: Dr. Jarvik, +1-212-397-3911 ext. 10, or rjarvik@jarvikheart.com
Web site: http://www.jarvikheart.com//
