Eight Year Follow-up of Patients Bridged to Cardiac Transplantation with Jarvik-7 Total Artificial Heart.

Abstract

403 We evaluated the long-term effectiveness of Jarvik-7 total artificial heart (TAH) in terminally ill heart failure patients awaiting cardiac transplantation (CT) who generally required this form of mechanical circulatory assistance, because their right ventricular function was too poor to permit isolated left ventricular assist device therapy. In our institution, between January 1, 1988 to December 31, 1990 we implanted 19 Jarvik-7 TAHs in patients who were Status I awaiting CT (Group I). We compared these patients to the other 69 patients, who were not as ill prior to CT, who were successfully transplanted without need for any other circulatory assist device (Group II). (Table)TableConclusions: One year survival in patients with Jarvik-7 TAH support before CT (Group I) was slightly worse than without it (Group II), but the five and eight year survival in Group I was significantly better than in Group II. Patients bridged to CT with Jarvik-7 TAH had not only better survival, but also had considerably less allograft rejection. In selected severe cases of terminal heart failure refractory to standard pharmacological treatment, Jarvik-7 TAH was a very effective bridge to CT. *p<0.05