Artificial hearts date back to the mid-1950s when Dr. Paul Winchell first patented an artificial heart.

The Jarvik 7
In 1982, Seattle dentist Dr. Barney Clark was the first person implanted with the Jarvik-7, an artificial heart intended to last a lifetime. William DeVries an American surgeon performed the surgery. The Jarvik-7 artificial heart was designed by Robert Jarvik. The patient survived 112 days. "It has been hard, but the heart itself has pumped right along." - Barney Clark

Creator of the Jarvik-7, Dr. Robert Jarvik is now working on the Jarvik 2000, a thumb-sized heart pump. "This came from the understanding that people want a normal life and just being alive is not good enough." - Dr. Robert Jarvik

New Electric Hearts
The race for the artificial heart. At the end of 1998 American heart specialist Michael DeBakey performed a world-first in heart surgery with a totally new device. If this electric heart proves successful, it could be a permanent alternative to a heart transplant.

William Kolff - Artificial Heart
William J. Kolff invented the first artificial heart and the first artificial kidney-dialysis machine.

Robert Jarvik - Artificial Heart
Robert Koffler Jarvik, inventor of the first permanently-implantable artificial heart, was born in Michigan on May 11, 1946.

Building a Better Heart
In 1982, a team led by William DeVries of the University of Utah implanted the Jarvik-7 into a patient named Barney Clark. He survived with the Jarvik-7 in his chest for 112 days.

The Human Heart Electrified
Map of the Human Heart - Amazing Heart Facts - The Artificial Human - Pioneering Surgeon: O. H. Frazier - Operation: Heart Transplant

Heart History
The Heart: An Online Exploration

Related Innovations
Cardiac Pacemaker
Medical Innovations.