The Artificial Heart:

A Design Example

BIOE 1000
October 18, 2001

The Human Heart

Heart has four

chambers
Right chambers
pump blood to lungs
to receive oxygen
Left chambers pump
oxygenated blood
from lungs to rest of
the body
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The Human Heart

Right and left atria receive blood
Right and left ventricles pump blood
Valves produce one-way blood flow
from atria ventricles arteries
Energy to pump blood comes from
nutrients and oxygen in blood
The blood supply to the heart is
provided by coronary arteries

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Heart Disease

Heart attack: blockage of coronary artery

damages portion of heart muscle
Congestive heart failure: gradual weakening
of heart
Millions suffer from heart disease
Many cases are treatable with lifestyle changes,

drugs and/or surgery

Surviving patients suffering from most severe
cases need new hearts!
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The Need for a Heart

Substitute
100,000 Americans/year suffering from
severe heart disease need new hearts
Only 2,000 patients receive heart
transplants
Conclusion: many patients die waiting
for a new heart!
A suitable alternative to donor hearts
could prolong thousands of lives

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History of Heart
Substitutes

WWII: first open heart

surgeries
1953: heart-lung machine
successfully used during
heart surgery
1958: Drs. Willem Kolff and
Tetsuzo Akutsu sustain a
dog for 90 minutes with a
PVC artificial heart
1967: Dr. Christian Barnard
transplants a donor heart
into a 59 year old man (he
survived 18 days)

PVC heart (1958)

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silicone heart (1965)

History of Heart
Substitutes

Liotta heart (1969)

Jarvik-7 (1982)

1969: Dr. Denton Cooley

uses an artificial heart to
sustain a patient waiting for
a donor (survived 3 days)
1972: Cyclosporine
introduced to suppress
immune responses of
transplant recipients
1982: Dr. William DeVries
implants the Jarvik-7 artificial
heart into Dr. Barney Clark
(he survived 112 days)

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Why Heart Substitutes Fail

Immune response rejects transplant or
side effects due to immune suppression
Infection due to tubes and wires passing
through skin
Formation of clots
Damage to red blood cells
Lack of pulsatile blood flow?

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Design Process

Identify the problem or need to address

Specify details/criteria of an adequate
solution to your problem
Implement various solutions that meet the
criteria you specified
Test to determine which solution is most
viable
Further testing to refine the solution you
chose
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Design Refinement

Process is iterative

Identify Problem

You need to repeat

various steps after

testing
Make design changes
based on test results

Specify Criteria

Implement Design

Failed designs
Design didnt meet

criteria
Could be due to
inappropriate criteria

Test Design

Refine Design

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Criteria for a Heart

Substitute

Must fit into chest cavity and connect to atria,

pulmonary artery and aorta quickly
Provide an adequate blood flow (8 10
liters/min)
Send deoxygenated blood to the lungs and
oxygenated blood to the body
Operate continuously for an indefinite period
of time
Provide adequate warning if something is
wrong or if it is going to fail
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Criteria for a Heart

Substitute

Should increase/decrease blood flow based

on patient activity level
Should not evoke an immune response
No wires or tubes that penetrate the skin
Should not produce blood clots
Should not damage red blood cells
Ideally should have pulsatile blood flow
Many others we havent thought of!
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The AbioCor Heart

Implanted into 59 year

old Robert Tools on
July 2, 2001 at Jewish
Hospital in Louisville KY
(96 days)
Patient is able to walk
around, organs are
functioning normally,
undergoing daily
rehabilitation for
eventual release
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How the AbioCor Heart

Works

Hydraulic pump forces

blood to lungs and body
Power is provided by an
internal rechargeable
battery
Battery is recharged by
coils on surface and
below skin
Internal controller
monitors system and
controls pump speed
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Surgical Procedure

Implant controller,
battery and coil
Connect patient to
heart-lung machine
Cut away ventricles
Sew grafts onto atria
and arteries
Connect implants to
grafts
Remove patient from
heart-lung machine

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AbioCor Design Criteria

Grapefruit size, weighs 2 lbs, requires a 7

hour surgery for implantation
Can provide up to 8 liters/min of blood to the
lungs and body
Has two chambers for pumping
deoxygenated blood to the lungs and
oxygenated blood to the body
Wireless energy transfer system allows for
continuous operation
Internal controller monitors operation
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AbioCor Design Criteria

Internal controller increases/decreases blood

flow based on blood oxygen levels
Materials are inert to the immune system
Completely contained within the chest no
wires or tubing through skin!
Made of special materials and special pump
design to prevent clots and RBC damage
Pumping alternates between chambers,
creating a pulsatile blood flow
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