First patient on East Coast to have artificial heart implant goes home from hospital

By Joe Kuttenkuler

More than two months after arriving at the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center with a failing heart, 60-year-old Cecil Nester publicly thanked the doctors, nurses and other staff members who “saved his life.” He also thanked Inga.

“She was a little noisy at first, but then I got used to her,” Nester told reporters during a briefing on Tuesday, just hours before he was to be discharged. Inga was the nickname the New Castle, Va., contractor gave the large, four-wheeled mechanical device that kept his artificial heart pumping for more than 50 days while he waited for a donor heart to become available.

On April 4, Nester underwent a groundbreaking – and life-saving - implantation of the only total artificial heart approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. It was replaced with a donor heart during surgery on May 24 and 25.

A subdued-but-excited Nester left the VCU Pauley Heart Center on Tuesday morning accompanied by his wife, Margaret Nester. He told reporters he was very anxious to get home to both his own bed and his Bassett hound.

“I’m very grateful to the Lord and to the doctors at the VCU Medical Center,” said Nester. “There was no alternative to surgery for me. Without this, I’d already be in the ground.”

“They’ve given me back my husband,” added Margaret.

Nester said he planned to return to work, albeit at a slower pace until he feels he has regained more strength.

Nester was able to benefit from the artificial heart, which supported his circulatory system and other organs while he awaited a transplant. Upon his arrival at VCU Medical Center, Nester had been suffering from end-stage heart failure. Upon implantation of the artificial heart, he was in physical therapy and exercising and was able to receive a transplant under more optimal circumstances than if he had been sick with heart failure.

“His prognosis is good,” said Vigneshwar Kasirajan, M.D., cardiothoracic surgeon and transplant team leader. “The artificial heart brings a new dimension to the care we can offer at VCU.”

The VCU Medical Center is one of just three hospitals in the United States, and seven others worldwide, currently certified to implant the artificial heart, called the TAH-t. The two other U.S. hospitals are the University Medical Center (UMC) in Tucson, Ariz., and the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio. 

The TAH-t pumps up to 9.5 liters of blood per minute through both ventricles – more than any other device – helping to rejuvenate vital organs that have atrophied due to a failing heart. In 2004, the American Heart Association named the TAH-t the No. 1 advance in cardiovascular medicine. 

The transplant team at VCU’s Pauley Heart Center underwent rigorous training in Tucson and Richmond to ensure that the hospital and the team were implant ready.