greybeard
Well-known member
Do you know which kind of valve replacement he had?
Aortic
Tricuspid
Mitral
pulmonary?
Pig heart transplant....
- Thread starter jltrent
- Start date
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Aortic
Tricuspid
Mitral
pulmonary?
I think it was tricuspid but I'm not 100%. I know they split his chest open. It was funny because he could golf but couldnt drive for a week or two because of the drugs.
It was nice to see his go so well. The technology in that department is amazing. Hopefully my son wont have to do it for 20 or 40 more years. Who knows what they will be doing by then.
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callmefence
Keyboard cowboy
Are you saying he was playing golf 48 hours after open heart surgery.......I don't know bout that brute..
I'm ok with that.
I dont know the details but my understanding is it's not near as invasive as it use to be. I do know I saw the cut on his chest and I was there playing golf because I drove sooo...
Ouachita
Well-known member
My little brother had emergency open heart surgery when he was 25 months old.
He was stuffing corn up his nose and riding a tricycle down the hospital hallway two days later.
We also got to meet the Six Million Dollar Man. Lee Majors came to visit the kids in the hospital. Thought mom was going go nuts.
That was 1975. Medical care has come a long way since then.
Named'em Tamed'em
Well-known member
The 3rd time Steve-o had his valve replaced he was 33yo and they went through leg arteries . They didn't stitch it up very well and it leaked some. He had a massive stroke 6 months later and past away.. one day we were putting a transmission in a truck he was 15 and he told my I'd make the most awesome Uncle!!
callmefence
Keyboard cowboy
Trans catheter valve replacement. They go in through a artery as well as some incisions in the chest for instruments. Usually used for patients with other health concerns that might not survive more invasive surgery.
True open heart ( still the preferred) where the breast bone is split usually requires a couple days in ICU. And a few more in hospital. No driving for 4- 6 weeks is my understanding. Swinging a golf club certainly no good.....tell you what I'll look into it and get back with you..... hopefully.
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jltrent
Well-known member
He grew up in Middlesboro Kentucky, close town to me, and his real name is Harvey Yeary. He was a heck of a football player in HS as I know a lady that was in his school grade. His mother and dad were killed at an early age and he lived with his aunt and Uncle who raised him. Not many famous people from this neck of the woods. They even have the football field named after him......Lee Majors field.....
Lee Majors - Wikipedia
To keep on subject I thought this demo on heart tools was fascinating. The sternal saw (gig saw device) to cut through the chest bone looks pretty rough.
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I had no idea he was from Middlesboro.
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jltrent
Well-known member
A few years ago I had some paroxysmal afib going on (flutter and fibulation) and after meeting with an Electrophysiologist decided rather than take meds try an ablation procedure. My doctor ( James-Merrill, MD) scheduled me two weeks later for the procedure and so far no more noted afib since, thank goodness. He does several a week and very experienced (Duke trained) as a lot it takes up to six hours to do the procedure as took around two hours start to finish on me. I still have some nerve pain as he said I had three pulmonary veins instead of four which is rare. Probably why it runs in my family a lot. This procedure is fairly new and they are getting better and better at it.
Ablation is a procedure to treat atrial fibrillation. It uses small burns or freezes to cause some scarring on the inside of the heart to help break up the electrical signals that cause irregular heartbeats. This can help the heart maintain a normal heart rhythm.
Ablation is a procedure to treat atrial fibrillation. It uses small burns or freezes to cause some scarring on the inside of the heart to help break up the electrical signals that cause irregular heartbeats. This can help the heart maintain a normal heart rhythm.
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Yes! Mr. TC was on the highest dose possible of Sotalol, had a pacemaker and was still in a-fib (and flutter) 85% of the time. In his condition, cardioversion wouldn't have made much difference (although I offered to zap him with the cattle prod, just to see if it worked). They generally only do a single ablation at a time but since his was such a severe case & we were traveling, opted for the double chamber. It took 8 hours, but he immediately went into sinus rhythm, and they reduced the Sotalol dosage in half. That was in Aug of '19 and he hasn't been in a-fib since Oct of '19 (it takes a few months for the procedure to take effect).
Having said that, the ablation is generally not a permanent fix: it's really just a time when (if?) he starts pacing again, but shouldn't be as severe.
Jeanne - Simme Valley
Well-known member
Speaking of advancement.
A friend's husband was rushed to the ER with apendectomy - he was in the hospital 7 hours, got diagnosed, prepped for surgery, and had appendix removed and sent home - all in 7 hours!
A friend's husband was rushed to the ER with apendectomy - he was in the hospital 7 hours, got diagnosed, prepped for surgery, and had appendix removed and sent home - all in 7 hours!
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jltrent
Well-known member
On the meds they put me on Flecainide. For about two weeks I didn't even know I was taking it and then it started to show effects. I passed out driving for a brief moment and was pretty scary. Also it didn't work. I went back to the ER and they put me on a drip which was too strong and stopped my heart a couple times (all I remember was hearing code blue over the intercom and looking up and about 5 nurses working on me.) When I went back to see the EP he reviewed my records and gave me the decision for the ablation. So far it has worked. The last time I went back to him he released me with no follow ups, but told me if you need me you know were I am at. On the fix every year from what I have read percentages go down that it continues to work, but being fairly new procedure from my understanding they are not sure how long and everybody is different. A second procedure to mend the fence if needed is proving out to be 90% plus so there is hope, especially if paraxial Afib to start with and no other heart complications.
That cattle prod might actually work. My mother has to go back maybe once a year for the cardioversion and then she seems good to go for a while. When I take her I try my best to get them togo ahead and do the cardioversion instead of just loading her down with meds.
Flecainide for AFib: Uses, Side Effects, and Interactions
Flecainide for Atrial Fibrillation | How it works, dosage, side effects, and potential interactions with other medications.
drafib.com
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jltrent
Well-known member
I think the reasoning behind this is to make it less likely to be rejected. Here is another in-depth up to date article about this as the guy is doing good so far.
A 57-year-old man who underwent a first-of-its-kind heart transplant involving a genetically-modified pig heart is in a "much happier place" after the transplant, according to his son.
David Bennett Sr., of Maryland, suffered from terminal heart disease and was deemed ineligible for a conventional heart transplant because of his severe condition, according to University of Maryland Medicine, where Bennett underwent the transplant.
On New Year's Eve, University of Maryland Medicine doctors were granted emergency authorization by the Food and Drug Administration to try the pig heart transplantation with Bennett, who had been hospitalized and bedridden for several months.
Bennett said he saw the risky surgery as his last option.
"It was either die or do this transplant. I want to live. I know it's a shot in the dark, but it's my last choice," he said the day before the surgery, according to University of Maryland Medicine. "I look forward to getting out of bed after I recover."
PHOTO: Transplant recipient David Bennett, Sr., center in white, poses with family members in a 2019 photo. (Byron Dillard via AP)
Bennett was so sick before the transplant that he was on an extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machine -- which pumps and oxygenates a patient's blood outside the body -- and had also been deemed ineligible for an artificial heart pump, according to University of Maryland Medicine.
"His level of illness probably exceeded our standards for what would be safe for human heart transplantation," said Dr. Bartley P. Griffith, a professor in transplant surgery at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.
It was Griffith who surgically transplanted the pig heart into Bennett. He and a team of researchers have spent the past five years studying and perfecting the transplantation of pig hearts, according to University of Maryland Medicine.
Pig hearts are similar in size to human hearts and have an anatomy that is similar, but not identical.
PHOTO: Surgeons perform a transplant of a heart from a genetically modified pig to patient David Bennett, Sr., in Baltimore, Jan, 7, 2022, in a first of its kind procedure. (Univ. of Maryland School of Medicine via AFP/Getty Images)
So far, Bennett's body has not rejected the pig heart, which experts said is the biggest concern after a transplant.
Xenotransplantation, transplanting animal cells, tissues or organs into a human, carries the risk of triggering a dangerous immune response, which can cause a "potentially deadly outcome to the patient," according to University of Maryland Medicine.
"It is a game-changer," Dr. Muhammad Mohiuddin, professor of surgery at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, who oversaw the transplant procedure with Griffith, said. "We have modified 10 genes in this in this pig heart. Four genes were knocked out, three of them responsible for producing antibodies that causes rejection."
MORE: Man undergoes 1st successful face, double hand transplant from same donor
Mohiuddin and Griffith said they are now closely monitoring Bennett to make sure his body continues to accept the new heart.
"He's awake. He is recovering and speaking to his caregivers," said Griffith. "And we hope that the recovery that he is having now will continue."
PHOTO: Dr. Bartley Griffith poses for a photo with patient David Bennett, Sr., right, who received a heart implant from a genetically modified pig, in Baltimore, in January 2022. (Univ. of Maryland School of Medicine via AFP/Getty Images)
Speaking of the possibility of rejection, Griffith added, "The pig heart will be attacked by different soldiers in our body, different immune players can take it out and we have designed a treatment plan, in addition to the humanized, genetically-edited heart, to try to account for that."
MORE: Daughter donates part of her liver to save her critically ill dad
Bennett's son, David Bennett, Jr., told "Good Morning America" the transplant provided his father a "level of hope."
VIDEO: Man receives genetically-modified heart in 1st successful transplant of its time (ABCNews.com)
"Hope that he could go home and hope that he could have the quality of life that he's so much desired," Bennett, Jr said. "He's in a much better place and a much happier place right now following this transplant procedure. He is happy with where he is at. Happy with the potential to get out of the hospital."
While the type of transplant Bennett received is groundbreaking, experts said it does not minimize the ongoing need for human organ donations.
Around 110,000 people in the United States are on the organ transplant waiting list, and more than 6,000 patients die each year before getting a transplant, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.
"Whether it's 3-D printing or growing organs in a lab setting or donations, we desperately need more organs," said ABC News chief medical correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton, a board-certified OBGYN.
branxchar&charx
Well-known member
They been talking about trying this for 20+ years, using pig organ transplants. I figured they had given up since i havent heard anything about it in a loooong awhile.
Also, who actually gets all these organs cuz i swear i always hear everyone is ineligible.
Also, who actually gets all these organs cuz i swear i always hear everyone is ineligible.
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jltrent
Well-known member
This one is different than before as the hog heart was genetically modified to hopefully make it were a human want reject. Looks like you can be a pretty rough customer and still qualify.
"The key principle in medicine is to treat anyone who is sick, regardless of who they are,"
branxchar&charx
Well-known member
I would be pretty livid about that too. However, since he was the literal guinea pig for this transplant, could they have went out of their way to find someone like him in case the procedure didnt, ahem, go as planned?
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jltrent
Well-known member
To last two weeks has to be a big step and showing improvement.
The patient who received a genetically modified pig heart reached a two-week post-transplant milestone. Physicians from the University of Maryland School of Medicine have reported continued post-operative cardiovascular improvement in the patient with normal organ function.
www.biospace.com
The patient who received a genetically modified pig heart reached a two-week post-transplant milestone. Physicians from the University of Maryland School of Medicine have reported continued post-operative cardiovascular improvement in the patient with normal organ function.
Pig Heart Transplant Recipient Reaches 2-Week Milestone, Hope for Kidney Patients | BioSpace
Xenotransplantation company United Therapeutics Corporation is making significant headway in using genetically modified animal organs as a replacement for failing organs in humans.
callmefence
Keyboard cowboy
Fellow that got that pig heart was not eligible for a human heart. I'm not quite sure if one or both but reasons giving where a violent criminal record and a history of not following doctors orders.
.....fair enough I guess but wondering who paid for it...
.....fair enough I guess but wondering who paid for it...
