Christiaan Barnard

Christiaan Barnard (November 8, 1922 – September 2, 2001) was a South African cardiac surgeon. He became famous for performing the world's first open heart transplant.

Heart transplant

The world's first open heart transplant operation was performed on 3 December 1967 in an operation lasting nine hours and using a team of thirty persons. The patient, Louis Washkansky, was 55 years old and suffering from diabetes and heart disease. The transplant heart came from a young woman, Denise Darvall, killed in a road accident. Washkansky survived the operation and lived for eighteen days, before succumbing to pneumonia induced by the immuno-suppressive drugs he was taking.

Related Topics:
3 December - Louis Washkansky - Diabetes - Heart disease - Denise Darvall - Road accident - Pneumonia - Drug

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Barnard was quite photogenic and enjoyed the media attention following the operation, which made him famous around the world. Barnard continued to perform heart transplants: a transplant operation was conducted on 2 January 1968, and the patient, Philip Blaiberg, survived for 19 months.

Related Topics:
Photogenic - 2 January - 1968 - Philip Blaiberg

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

His last patient lived for 24 years after his transplant (http://africanhistory.about.com/library/weekly/aa090601a.htm). In 1969, Barnard got a divorce, and in 1970 he married the glamorous Barbara Zoellner.

Related Topics:
1969 - 1970 - Barbara Zoellner

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

He also pioneered new and risky techniques, including double transplants (1974), artificial valves and using animal hearts for emergency treatment (1977). He performed 10 orthotopic transplants (1967 – 1973), and Barnard or his group performed 48 heterotopic transplants (1975 – 1983). The introduction of cyclosporine meant a resumption in orthotopic operations.

Related Topics:
1974 - 1977 - 1967 - 1973 - 1975 - 1983 - Cyclosporine

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~