Press Release:

On Nov. 21, Total Artificial Heart patient Troy Golden gives his first sermon in 6 months at the New Life Assembly of God in Geary, OK. In his backpack, he is wearing the 13.5 lb Freedom portable driver which powers his Total Artificial Heart.

TUCSON, Ariz. – Nov. 30, 2010 – Before heart failure stopped him in his tracks, 45-year-old Troy Golden had preached every Sunday for the last 12 years at the New Life Assembly of God in Geary, OK. Too sick to preach for the last six months, on Sunday, Nov. 21, Golden gave his first sermon since receiving the SynCardia temporary Total Artificial Heart and being discharged home using the Freedom® portable driver.

"The hope and faith and trust that I have, comes from a Lord who has given me new life," said Golden. "It's wonderful... I just can't express how wonderful and awesome it has been to preach again."

In the crowd at the rural Oklahoma church were Golden's cardiovascular surgeon, Dr. James Long, and his heart failure cardiologist, Dr. Douglas Horstmanshof, both co-directors of the Advanced Cardiac Care program at INTEGRIS Baptist Medical Center.

Golden is participating in an FDA-approved Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) clinical study of the 13.5 lb Freedom driver, the first portable driver designed to power the SynCardia Total Artificial Heart both inside and outside the hospital. The IDE clinical study is designed to demonstrate that the Freedom driver is a suitable pneumatic driver for stable Total Artificial Heart patients and can be safely used at home.

Troy Golden is participating in the FDA-approved Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) clinical study of the Freedom portable driver. He is wearing the 13.5 lb driver which powers his Total Artificial Heart in the Freedom Backpack.

"It boggles my mind that I was hooked up to a 418-lb machine, and here's a little, 13, 14 pound machine doing the same thing," said Golden. "It's unbelievable."  

Currently, the only FDA-approved driver for powering the Total Artificial Heart is the 418-lb "Big Blue" hospital driver. Patients are confined to the hospital while supported by Big Blue.

Golden was born with a genetic condition that has been slowly attacking his heart since birth. In January, he was put on the heart transplant list, but his condition continued to deteriorate. On Sept. 15, Golden became the first person in the region to receive the Total Artificial Heart. On Oct. 18, he became only the second Total Artificial Heart patient in U.S. history to be discharged from the hospital to wait for a matching donor heart at home.

While in the hospital, Golden wrote several sermons, most of which shared a common thread: "There is always hope," said Golden. "No matter where you are at in your life, no matter what the circumstance, we have to keep the faith."

###

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 1,000 implants of the Total Artificial Heart, accounting for more than 250 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
Like SynCardia on Facebook
Follow SynCardia on Twitter – @SynCardia
Connect with SynCardia on LinkedIn

Media Contact:
Don Isaacs
Vice President of Communications
SynCardia Systems, Inc.
Cell: (520) 955-0660