NEWS: Artificial heart man dies

From: J Corbally (icorb@indigo.ie)
Date: Sat Dec 01 2001 - 20:37:47 MST


Some sad news

>Artificial heart man dies

>http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/health/newsid_1685000/1685825.stm

>Robert Tools, the man who made history by receiving the first fully
>implantable artificial heart, has died from complications relating to his
>chronic medical condition.
>The 59-year-old American developed abdominal bleeding because of
>continuing anti-coagulation problems and died on Friday in the Jewish
>Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky.

>The AbioCor artificial heart, a titanium and plastic device, is
>self-contained, with internal and external batteries.

also in this article;

>One other patient to have received the AbioCor, created by Abiomed Inc. of
>Massachusetts, died only last week.
>The unidentified man died of uncontrolled bleeding within 20 hours of his
>operation at St Luke's Episcopal Hospital in Houston, Texas

While the other death may have been related to the procedure, it looks to
me as if they still have some work to do maintaining blood quality. This
might set back the acceptance of the device.

Regards,

James....
"If you can't take a little bloody nose, maybe you ought to go back home and
crawl under your bed. It's not safe out here. It's wondrous, with treasures
to satiate desires both subtle and gross. But it's not for the timid."
-Q, Star Trek:TNG episode 'Q Who'



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