CardioWest artificial heart patient
Vanessa Cirillo, 28, works out with her physical therapist Robert
Bailey at University Medical Center in Tucson, Ariz.
She was implanted with her artificial heart on Aug.
10, 2007.Tucson, Ariz. –
February 14, 2008 – At age 20, Vanessa
Cirillo suffered a heart attack caused by a virus.
She recovered and lived a healthy life until June 2007,
when her heart condition became critical. Her heart had
enlarged several times its normal size (cardiomyopathy).
It was no longer pumping enough blood to sustain her body.
She needed a heart transplant but no donor heart was available.
To save her life, she was flown from a Las Vegas hospital
to University
Medical Center (UMC) in Tucson, Ariz.
On Aug. 10, 2007, doctors removed Vanessa’s dying
heart and implanted the CardioWest™
temporary Total Artificial Heart (TAH-t) as a bridge
to human heart transplant.
“Vanessa is only about 5’4, 117 pounds, so
we didn’t think the CardioWest artificial heart
was going to fit,” explained UMC surgeon Dr.
Jack Copeland. “However, because of her enlarged
heart, there was enough space to implant the CardioWest.
This saved her life because she suffered an unrelated
intestinal infection. If she had been on a Left Ventricular
Assist Device (LVAD) or any other device, the infection
would have killed her.”
Boxing Her Way To Health
With the help of the artificial heart, Vanessa fought
through her infection and recovered. Once stabilized,
Vanessa began to hit the gym with UMC staff. Physical
therapist Robert Bailey challenged her with an increasingly
rigorous work-out schedule, which included boxing.
While on the CardioWest artificial heart, Vanessa Cirillo boxes as part
of her work out in preparation for a heart transplant. She received her
human heart transplant on Nov. 24, 2007. Today, she is enjoying life
with her mom, family and friends.
On
Nov. 24, 2007, after 106 days on the CardioWest artificial
heart, Vanessa received her donor heart. Eleven days
later she was discharged. Today, Vanessa is enjoying
life with her mom, friends and family. She recently
moved into her own Tucson apartment and continues to
box and work out as part of her heart transplant rehabilitation.
Next fall she hopes to start pursuing a degree in nutrition
at the University of Arizona.
Watch footage of Vanessa boxing here.
February Heart Month - Go Red
for Women: Heart disease is the number one killer of
both men and women in the United States. Perceived as
a disease that predominantly affects men, the American
Heart Association is trying to increase heart disease
awareness among women. Check out the Go Red for Women
movement at: http://www.goredforwomen.org/
###
Originally designed as a permanent replacement heart,
the CardioWest artificial heart is currently approved
as a bridge to human heart transplant for patients dying
from end stage biventricular failure. These patients
are often days, if not hours from death. Their survival
depends on receiving a matching donor heart, or a CardioWest
artificial heart as a bridge to transplant.
In the 10-year pivotal clinical study of the CardioWest
artificial heart (New
England Journal of Medicine 2004; 351: 859-867),
79 percent of patients receiving the TAH-t survived
to transplant. This is the highest bridge to transplant
rate for any heart device in the world.
Media Contact:
SynCardia
Systems, Inc.
Director of Communications
Don
Isaacs
Cell: (520) 955-0660
MULTIMEDIA AVAILABLE:
- Resources
for Reporters |
