Australia

Australian Becomes World's First Patient Discharged With Artificial Heart

Published MAR 12 2025

Story

Above: A total artificial heart without valves is seen in Houston on July 25, 2024. Image credit: Jason Fochtman/Contributor/Houston Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers via Getty Images

The Facts

An Australian man in his 40s has become the first person worldwide to be discharged from the hospital with a fully artificial heart. It was revealed Wednesday that the unnamed patient received the BiVACOR Total Artificial Heart implant during a six-hour operation at St Vincent's Hospital in Sydney on Nov. 22, 2024.
ABC
Guardian
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While hospitalized, the patient spent several weeks in intensive care before being discharged in February, becoming the first person to leave the hospital with an artificial heart implant.
Labonline
Au
The patient, who was experiencing severe heart failure, lived with the artificial heart for a record 105 days before receiving a successful donor heart transplant in early March, surpassing previous cases where patients remained hospitalized.
Newdaily
Guardian
The titanium-based device, invented by Queensland-born Daniel Timms, uses magnetic levitation technology to pump blood through the body. Its rotor is suspended by magnets to prevent mechanical wear between parts.
ABC
Herald Sun
This Australian implant was the sixth worldwide and the first outside the US. The world's first total artificial heart implant occurred at the Texas Heart Institute, in July 2024.
Labonline
Newdaily
Herald Sun
The procedure was part of the Monash University-led Artificial Heart Frontiers Program, which received a $50M grant from the federal government's Medical Research Future Fund to develop solutions for advanced heart failure.
Au
Health Portfolio Ministers

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The Spin

Narrative A

This artificial heart's unique design and magnetic levitation technology ensures unmatched safety. It's a revolutionary breakthrough in treating heart failure, potentially eliminating the need for donor hearts and saving thousands of lives annually.

The Sydney Morning Herald

Australian Manufacturing Forum

Narrative B

The current 105-day functioning span of the artificial heart falls significantly short of the typical 10-year lifespan of transplanted donor hearts, indicating substantial development is still needed before it can be considered a permanent solution for heart failure patients.

Guardian

Sciencedirect