1st Recipient of Totally Portable Heart Pump Dies

A 52-year-old man who was the first recipient of a portable heart pump designed to keep patients alive and mobile while they await donated hearts died two weeks after the operation, the hospital announced Saturday.

Larry Heinsohn died Thursday of multiple organ failure, including his liver and kidneys, Texas Heart Institute spokesman Marc Mattsson said. His death was unrelated to the battery-operated device, Mattsson said.

“The doctor had said throughout that he had so many other problems, he was a very sick man,” he said.

Heinsohn, of Shreveport, La., was the first person to test the HeartMate artificial heart pump designed by Thermo Cardiosystems Inc. of Woburn, Mass. It was implanted on May 9.

The 2 1/2-pound pump, known as a ventricular assist device, is implanted in the abdominal cavity and connected to a battery pack that can be hung over the shoulder.

HeartMate developer Victor Poirier said the device has been used 44 times since the mid-1970s, but until now has been powered pneumatically--with air pumps. With the batteries, the patient has complete mobility while awaiting a heart donor, he said.