Three EU surgery facilities trained on SynCardia artificial heart

Surgical teams from three European hospitals, Turkiye Yuksek Ihtisas Hospital in Ankara, Turkey, the Yeditepe University Hospital in Istanbul, Turkey, and the University Hospital of Bordeaux in France, have completed the first phase of training to deploy SynCardia Systems’ CardioWest total artificial heart device.

According to the Tucson, Ariz.-based company, the device holds CE Mark and FDA approval and can be deployed as a temporary tool for patients dying from end-stage, biventricular failure and undergoing transplant.

In addition, the device enables ventricle blood flow up to 9.5 l/min, has a 79 percent bridge-to-transplant rate and eliminates failing ventricles and malfunctioning heart valves.

The CardioWest has been implanted in roughly 800 patients and is certified for implantation in 49 facilities worldwide, the company said.

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