Mechanical Heart - Research Paper Example

Introduction The mechanical heart was introduced as a means of providing a bridge leading up to a heart transplant. At times when there were patients who were awaiting a heart transplant, the mechanical heart would be substituted for a time, until a heart would become available or a matching donor had been found. The heart has four chambers, four valves and blood vessels which are joined. These chambers and valves are the main elements of the heart system. The four chambers perform different functions.

Normally, these valves allow blood flow in one direction. If there is a deviation from the normal blood flow through the heart, as in the instance of a congested heart failure, a viral attack on the heart, extremely high blood pressure, disrupting the heart’s rhythm, a heart attack, malfunctioning of the valve or other heart related issues, which is often the result of a diseased heart. It is for these reasons that the mechanical heart was developed, to perform the pumping functions of a normal heart, because without this normal pumping function, serious heart failure or death would be the end result.

Heart disease can be treated by medicine; it is at this point, when patients undergo surgeries such as coronary artery bypass surgery, beating heart surgery (both MIDCAB and OPCAB) or minimal endoscopic vein harvesting, TMR, minimally invasive valve surgery, endovascular aortic aneurysm repair, endoscopic radial artery harvesting, minimally invasive varicose vein surgery or a heart transplant is needed, as a few more years are added to a patient’s life. In 1998, approximately thirty percent of the patients suffering from heart disease opted for a transplant.

The artificial as well as the mechanical hearts play a crucial role in assisting these patients. The mechanical heart works in pretty much the same way as a normal heart does, it works to maintain the proper blood and oxygen mixture, this is dependent on the condition of the patient’s heart, it is also able to maintain the normal heart rate. The mechanical heart works as a device used to reduce the work load of the normal heart which can no longer function at its normal capacity. It is equipped with a pulsating device which is able to regulate the beat of the heart.

The mechanical heart also consists of a device called LVAD (Left Ventricle Assistance Device) which performs as a normal cardiac device. Although there are many advantages associated with using the mechanical heart, as with everything else, there are also some disadvantages. Hence the prior assumption of the mechanical heart being used as a bridge and a temporary device. Problem Statement The mechanical heart is considered a gift of modern science; it works to support the patient and assists in keeping them alive until a replacement is found.

It has been a virtual lifesaver to many people worldwide, people who thought it would not be possible for them to function as a normal human being again. Even though it is an extremely helpful device, it also has a lot of problems associated with it’s induction into the human body. The issues are as follows: 1. There is a sound associated with the valve when it is functioning, it may or may not be noticeable to some persons, but others will notice it. I can be heard distinctly in a quiet room.

This sound has been known to cause interference with the patient’s sleep. 2. This mechanical device can cause blood clotting in patients; the clotting of blood can result in malfunctioning of the device. In a bid to address this problem, it is recommended by doctors that patients use the drug warfarin. 3. Mechanical hearts can also lead to bleeding in a patient; this is more common in the older patients, although not uncommon in the younger ones. This bleeding can be so severe that it ultimately leads to death.

The possibility of this happening is not so frequent. 4. The mechanical heart is not suitable for persons who do hard physical labor. As it could result in a failure of the device, because the capacity of the mechanical heart can not accommodate the pumping action for the heart to keep up. 5. Longevity is an issue because only a few of the patients who received the device lived for over two years. 6. A twenty eight percent rate of infection was noted as a result of using the device in patients within three months, a forty two percent occurrence of bleeding was noted at six months and a thirty five percent probability of the device failing was noted at approximately two years.

Even though this device served to improve the quality of life for some, there were others who also suffered as a result of using it. Sources Cited 1. Jessup M. “Mechanical cardiac-support devices – dreams and devilish details.” http://www.nejm.org. November 15, 2001. April, 20, 2011. 2. Copeland JG, Smith RG, Arabia FA, et al. “Cardiac replacement with a total artificial heart as a bridge to transplantation.” http://www.nejm.org. November 15, 2001. April 20, 2011.< http://www.nejm.

org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa040186> 3. Guy, T. Sloane. “Evolution and Current Status of the Total Artificial Heart: The Search Continues.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. January 1988. April 20, 2011.