Oct 042010
A 15-year-old Italian boy with Duchenne’s muscular dystrophy is the first person to receive a permanent artificial heart. The device, which is only 4 centimeters long, is expected to extend the boy’s life by another 20-25 years. This is potentially big news for people who need organ transplants but have underlying health conditions that keep them off the the organ transplant lists. Let’s hope that this kid’s heart performs as expected and that artificial organs eventually become viable and affordable options for not just people with disabilities, but everyone.
