Australian man survives 100 days with artificial heart in world-first success

Sydney surgeons ‘enormously proud’ after patient in his 40s receives the Australian-designed implant designed as a bridge before donor heart

The BiVACOR total artificial heart is the world’s first implantable rotary blood pump that can act as a complete replacement for a human heart. Picture: Claire Usmar/BiVACOR

An Australian man with heart failure has become the first person in the world to walk out of a hospital with a total artificial heart implant.

The Australian researchers and doctors behind the operation announced that the implant had been an “unmitigated clinical success” after the man lived with the device for more than 100 days before receiving a donor heart transplant in early March.