This week, the CNN Vital Signs reveals what the artificial heart is and how it works. The device implanted in the human body to replace part of the patients’ diseased organ is used as a bridge to heart transplantation.
This means that, while the person is in line waiting for the organ, the artificial heart takes over the function of pumping blood throughout the body. To perform this task, it is powered by a battery, which the patient can carry in a bag.
The rerun of the program presented by cardiologist Roberto Kalil will air this Wednesday (12), at 10:30 pm, right after the CNN newspaper, in the prime range of CNN Brasil. Different specialists in cardiac surgery participate in the episode, such as cardiologist Fabio Jatene, cardiopneumologist Paulo Pêgo and cardiopediatrician Estela Azeka.
Artificial heart in children
According to cardiologist Estela Azeka, in 2020, the number of surgeries for the placement of the device in children increased at the Instituto do Coração, in São Paulo, where she works (see interview in the video above).
Estela highlights that this type of procedure is against others that are no longer performed because of the Covid-19 pandemic. “We performed 21 surgeries, because they are serious patients, who have priority and cannot be prevented from receiving the transplant”, he says.
Kalil says that one of these children is a 1-year-old baby, who must undergo a heart transplant after staying for six months with an artificial heart. The cardiologist shows the artificial heart factory of Instituto do Coração, which is located in the basement of the hospital, in São Paulo, and presents a startup that is developing a heart in 3D format.
The episode also tells the story of 13-year-old Guilherme Rossi, the first Brazilian child to receive an artificial heart, and the journey of Ariane, who developed heart disease during her daughter’s delivery and started using the device. The trajectory moved singer Eddie Vedder, lead singer of the band Pearl Jam, who dedicated an entire show to her.
(Posted by Lucas Rocha of CNN)
Reference: CNN Brasil
