On Aug. 31, the life and accomplishments of Dr. Willem Johan Kolff, the world's most prolific inventor of artificial organs, will be honored during the Kolff Memorial Symposium in The Netherlands, where he was born. Dr. Kolff passed away at the age of 97 on Feb. 11, 2009.

Among Dr. Kolff's many accomplishments were the artificial kidney, heart-lung machine, artificial eye, artificial ear and artificial arm. However, he was best known for his decades of work that culminated in the first human implant of a permanent Total Artificial Heart in 1982.

"Over the years, there have been hundreds of Total Artificial Heart designs," said Steve Langford, SynCardia's senior clinical support specialist who started with the Total Artificial Heart in 1983. "It's a true testament to Dr. Kolff's work that his Total Artificial Heart has been implanted more than 800 times, and is the only one that is approved and in use worldwide today."

At the symposium, Dr. Michiel Morshuis, senior physician and heart surgeon at the Heart & Diabetes Center NRW in Bad Oeynhausen, Germany, will present on clinical experience with the modern version of Dr. Kolff's Total Artificial Heart, the SynCardia temporary CardioWest™ Total Artificial Heart. He will also introduce the 12-lb wearable discharge driver currently under development that is designed to power the Total Artificial Heart outside the hospital.

The Heart & Diabetes Center NRW has performed more than 130 implants of the Total Artificial Heart. The hospital also pioneered the development and use of the first portable driver to allow stable Total Artificial Heart patients in Europe to enjoy a quality life at home while they wait for a matching donor heart.

Source
SynCardia