For 25 years, the Intermountain Medical Center Artificial Heart Program has been using artificial heart technology to save the lives of patients who would otherwise not be alive.
“It’s amazing. I just never in my life believed I’d be in this situation,” says Olaf Questereit.
Olaf has dealt with heart problems for nearly 10 years. Earlier this year - after various valve repairs, multiple arrhythmias, a defibrillator pacemaker, medication, and constant AFIB - he was sent to the heart failure team at Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute.
“He had a genetic problem, right ventricular dysplasia, that made his right heart fail,” says William T. Caine, MD, a Cardiothoracic Surgeon at Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute.
“To hear that my heart was in such bad shape that I needed a new heart, it was, there were tears,” says Olaf.
Dr. Caine says the best option for Olaf was to get a total artificial heart as soon as possible which meant May 23, 2018.
“Because it was his right side and because of the rhythm problems, those are two reasons why a total artificial heart was the best thing for him,” says Dr. Caine.
A total artificial heart is a mechanical device that completely replaces a patient’s own heart while they wait for a transplant.
“It’s a miracle. I think to myself every day, ‘I’d be dead if it weren’t for this,’ and waiting for a transplant is nothing because I’ve still got this thing to keep me going,” says Olaf.
It has been a very difficult process. After the artificial heart was put in, Olaf’s kidneys began shutting down. This required dialysis for a few weeks. He also had to have a breathing tube for some of the process. However, despite all of that, Olaf is currently working on getting strong as he waits for a donor heart.
“I have physical therapy a couple of times a day, and I get to go outside and walk,” says Olaf.
The goal of this is to make the recovery process easier on Olaf after the transplant.
“They feel like the transplant side of it is a much easier operation because they’re in such better shape when they go into it,” says Dr. Caine.