Press Release:

TUCSON, Ariz. – Nov. 1, 2006 – Washington University surgeons at Barnes-Jewish Hospital will begin training at UMC in Tucson on November 2nd to become one of only nine hospitals in the U.S. certified to implant the CardioWest™ temporary Total Artificial Heart (TAH-t). The heart transplant team, led by Dr. Nader Moazami, will be the first in the St. Louis area to be certified to implant the TAH-t, a modern version of the Jarvik-7 Artificial Heart.

“Many patients are too sick to wait for heart transplants. With a limited supply of donor hearts, the TAH-t is another viable alternative we will offer to patients who otherwise may not survive,” explained Dr. Moazami.

Ranked #10 on the U.S. News and World Report’s Best Heart Hospitals of 2006, the Barnes-Jewish program has earned a reputation for taking on the most challenging cases, including patients who may have been turned down at other implant centers. The TAH-t offers hope to the most critically ill patients, often those with a life expectancy of only hours or days.

Since 1985, Washington University surgeons at Barnes-Jewish Hospital have performed more than 500 heart transplants. The program is known as one of the leading centers in the country for post-transplant care and use of cardiac assist devices.

Dr. Moazami has been the surgical director of the heart transplant program at Washington University and Barnes-Jewish Hospital since July 2001. Prior to coming to St. Louis, he completed a cardiothoracic surgery fellowship at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, where he specialized in the surgical treatment of heart failure, ventricular assist devices and heart transplantation.

“We know that it (TAH-t) salvages a large number of patients who are really spiraling downward so rapidly that there’s no other device that can bring them back and this device (the TAH-t) does it,” said Dr. Jack Copeland, who has been a leader in artificial heart surgery since 1985.

The CardioWest™ TAH-t replaces the patient’s dying heart. In most patients it is able to restore cardiac output. This facilitates recovery of vital organs, such as the liver and kidneys that have declined because of low blood flow. This improves the condition of patients who were near death from end-stage biventricular heart failure. The TAH-t makes them better able to survive a heart transplant.

According to the pivotal clinical study of the TAH-t in the New England Journal of Medicine, receiving a CardioWest™ TAH-t increases the patient’s odds of living another year from 31% to 70%. Once transplanted, these once near-death patients have an 86% chance of living another year and a 64% chance of living five years or more (NEJM 2004; 351: 859-867).

The first phase in the three part TAH-t certification program begins at the Sarver Heart Center at University Medical Center, in Tucson, Arizona. Phases two and three of certification training will take place at Barnes Jewish Hospital. The training classes are taught by Marvin Slepian, M.D., Richard Smith MSEE, CCE, and noted heart surgeon, Jack Copeland, M.D., the founders of SynCardia Systems, Inc., manufacturers of the CardioWest™ TAH-t.

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About the SynCardia temporary Total Artificial Heart
SynCardia Systems, Inc. (Tucson, AZ) is the privately-held manufacturer of the world's first and only FDA, Health Canada and CE approved Total Artificial Heart. Originally used as a permanent replacement heart, SynCardia's Total Artificial Heart is currently approved as a bridge to transplant for people dying from end-stage biventricular heart failure. There have been more than 950 implants of the Total Artificial Heart, accounting for more than 230 patient years of life.

Similar to a heart transplant, SynCardia's Total Artificial Heart replaces both failing heart ventricles and the four heart valves, eliminating the symptoms and source of end-stage biventricular failure. Unlike a donor heart, the Total Artificial Heart is immediately available at SynCardia Certified Centers and does not require expensive anti-rejection medication, which can cause subsequent complications. It is the only device that provides immediate, safe blood flow of up to 9.5 liters per minute through both ventricles. This high volume of safe blood flow helps speed the recovery of vital organs, helping make the patient a better transplant candidate.

SynCardia Ranked #20 Among World's 50 Most Innovative Companies
In March 2011, Fast Company magazine ranked SynCardia #20 in its annual list of the "World's 50 Most Innovative Companies" for "giving mobility to artificial heart recipients." Weighing 13.5 pounds, SynCardia's Freedom® portable driver is the world's first wearable driver designed to power the Total Artificial Heart both inside and outside the hospital. The Freedom driver is CE approved for use in Europe and undergoing an FDA-approved Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) clinical study in the U.S.

For additional information, please visit: http://www.syncardia.com
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Media Contact:
Don Isaacs
Vice President of Communications
SynCardia Systems, Inc.
Cell: (520) 955-0660