(ANSA) - BOLOGNA, 22 APR - On 25 December it had to be attached to an artificial heart in the Pediatric Cardio Surgery department of the Sant'Orsola Polyclinic in Bologna.
Now, after 120 days, he has left the ward thanks to a lighter artificial heart, adopted for the first time in Italy.
The protagonist of the story is a 6-year-old boy hospitalized in the Emilian structure.
The latest generation device is called Driving Unit Excor and the intervention took place two days ago.
The new artificial hearts, observed by Sant'Orsola, are much lighter, going from the 90 kilograms of the old models to the current 9. In this way, thanks to a simple trolley, children are autonomous and independent.
These are life-saving instruments that completely replace the heart, consisting of a mechanical pump that simulates cardiac functions.
In the Sant'Orsola pediatric cardiac surgery unit, directed by Gaetano Gargiulo, there are currently five children with complex pathologies that require the use of an artificial heart and who will receive the new device.
The investment is around 90,000 euros per year for each patient.
(HANDLE).