Electrohydraulic artificial heart
Electrohydraulic artificial heart
Previous
Next
Usage conditions apply
- Description
- This electrohydraulic artificial heart is an early prototype for the Jarvik-7 artificial heart. The left and right chambers of the heart are connected with Velcro©. The electrohydrolic heart was featured on the cover of LIFE Magazine, September 1981 proclaiming, “The Artificial Heart Is Here.”
- The electrohydraulic heart has only one moving part, the reversible impeller or turbine. Blood does not go through the impeller, therefore there is not supposed to a concern with blood damage. Numerous scientists and engineers worked on the development of the artificial heart, but it was Robert Jarvik, M.D. in the Kolff laboratory who changed the TAH from a sphere to an elliptical shape allowing it to fit more easily into the chest cavity. Jarvik also added a third and fourth bladder to each ventricle creating more flexibility and durability. The addition of two extra rubber bellows allowed for more vigerous blood flow. His improvements allowed the correct amount of blood 100cc's, to circulate through the body. Jarvik also experimented with materials using polyurethane Biomar to create surfaces inside the housing which prevented blood thrombosis or clotting.
- The first implantation of a Jarvik-7 Total Artificial Heart occurred December 1982. The TAH was implanted in Barney Clark by Dr. William DeVries at the University of Utah Medical Center. The highly publicized artificial heart operations brought attention to the triumphs of scientific technology its limitations,and its costs, both literal and figurative.
- Object Name
- heart, artificial
- artificial heart, electrohydraulic
- date made
- 1977-10-28
- maker
- Kolff Laboratory
- place made
- United States: Utah, Salt Lake City
- Physical Description
- salastic (overall material)
- dacron (overall material)
- metal (overall material)
- velcro (overall material)
- Measurements
- overall: 5 in x 6 1/2 in; 12.7 cm x 16.51 cm
- overall: 4 in x 7 1/4 in x 7 3/4 in; 10.16 cm x 18.415 cm x 19.685 cm
- ID Number
- 1998.0035.169
- accession number
- 1998.0035
- catalog number
- 1998.0035.169
- Credit Line
- Willim J. Kolff, M.D.
- subject
- Cardiology
- Artificial Organs
- Medicine
- See more items in
- Medicine and Science: Medicine
- Health & Medicine
- Artificial Hearts
- Exhibition
- Inventing In America
- Exhibition Location
- National Museum of American History
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
Nominate this object for photography.
Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.
If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.
Note: Comment submission is temporarily unavailable while we make improvements to the site. We apologize for the interruption. If you have a question relating to the museum's collections, please first check our Collections FAQ. If you require a personal response, please use our Contact page.
