Early in the morning, Wang Dali drove to the Kunming Animal Experiment Center.
This is a long-term cooperative unit of Sanqing, and general clinical animal experiments are conducted here.
Wang Dali skillfully put on surgical clothes, opened the operating room door, and saw an awe-inspiring scene.
I saw a pig under general anesthesia, already lying peacefully on the operating table, ready to devote itself to science, and waiting for the start of the "heart-changing" experiment.
Around the operating table, instruments and equipment of various shapes were humming and running. Fluctuating curves were displayed on the screen and beeping sounds were made. The doctors were busy in an orderly manner.
Dean Liu Daming came over with a smile: "Mr. Wang, good morning, we just got ready and you came."
Wang Dali nodded and said that he was also a little nervous. Although the test results of the artificial heart in the laboratory were perfect in all aspects, whether it could be used or not would not be known until he went to the operating table.
Dean Liu took him to the operating table and introduced him eloquently.
"You see, although we are an animal experiment center here, we hire serious doctors with very rich medical experience, and the instruments we use are basically similar to the surgical equipment and instruments commonly used in hospitals."
"You guys, Sanqing, are really amazing. After so many years of cooperation, this artificial heart still shocked me."
"Gee, this should be the smallest artificial heart in the world. It's only 90 grams, but it's so powerful. It can even be charged wirelessly. In the future, patients will no longer have to carry a heavy battery pack around. It saves so much trouble. …”
Dean Liu was full of praise for Sanqing's artificial heart. Wang Dali listened and nodded absently with "hmm". At this moment, his entire mind was focused on the upcoming operation.
Under two shadowless lights, medical staff were busy performing their duties.
Several doctors gently moved the pig's body while discussing in a low voice. They were performing tracheal intubation on the sleeping pig in preparation for connecting a ventilator for assisted breathing during the operation.
On the other side, the nurses were also busy, with surgical forceps, surgical scissors, scalpels, gauze, surgical threads... After a while, the surgical instruments were all over the table of the operating cart.
"Because the pig's neck is very short, it is difficult to find the trachea, so it takes some trouble." Dean Liu explained in a timely manner after some commercial touting.
Wang Dali nodded and saw that the pig was ready and turned over.
"The operation has begun." After Dean Liu said this, his face became solemn and he stopped talking. He and Wang Dali watched the operation quietly.
The operating cart was pushed to the right side of the operating table, and the instrument nurse stood aside, sticking to her post.
The two cardiac surgeons, one on the left and one on the right, stood on both sides of the operating table.
Pick up the electric knife and lift the knife with your hand.
Smoke rises and the pig's chest opens.
A living heart beats on the screen.
Suddenly, the two doctors stopped at the same time and looked up at the screen.
"Why is your blood pressure so low?"
"Give me a shot of lidocaine."
"Give me salt water."
"Okay, okay, it's normal."
After a period of confusion, the operation continued.
"Now we can give you some heparin."
"Get the defibrillator."
"Adrenaline, push!"
"70."
As various instructions were issued, the operation was carried out in an orderly manner.
The sounds of "Gu-Gu-" and "Woo-Woo-" kept echoing in the operating room, which was the sound of the instrument alarm.
The two doctors raised their heads from time to time, looked at the screen, and then lowered their heads to continue the operation.
Wang Dali stared closely at the surgery scene without blinking, not even daring to utter a breath.
On the screen, the doctor sewed a small round ring on the tip of the pig's heart, and then punched the hole along the ring.
Another doctor already had the artificial heart in his hand. The moment he pulled out the balloon with his left hand, he inserted the inlet end of the pump into the apex opening with his right hand. The action was done in one go, with very little blood loss.
At this moment, the heart on the screen is still beating vigorously.
This is followed by an artificial blood vessel that is anastomosed to the blood pump to connect the pump to the left ventricle and aorta.
Since this was the first animal experiment, the surgery was done more conservatively, with only part of the apex removed, and then an artificial heart was used as a ventricular assist device to replace the left ventricle.
It is equivalent to only taking on half of the heart function, and the right ventricle does not have any action.
Unknowingly, the morning passed and the time came to one o'clock in the afternoon.
Suddenly, the two doctors exhaled in unison and gave the order.
"Start the blood pump device."
"Okay." Following the command, the artificial heart began to work.
"Remove assisted breathing device."
"Get ready to close your chest."
The operation was successfully completed and the two doctors left the operating table.
They looked tired and were about to walk out of the operating room when they suddenly saw Wang Dali, their eyes lit up and they walked over quickly.
"Mr. Wang, the artificial heart really opened my eyes. I didn't expect to be able to perform an artificial heart transplant myself."
"Mr. Wang, I heard that this is a project that you are fully responsible for. I have a few questions to ask."
The two of them looked happy and spoke one sentence at a time.
Wang Dali nodded: "If you have any questions, just tell me."
"When can it be applied clinically and be industrialized? I have a relative with a bad heart, which has developed into heart failure in the past two years. But he is too old to undergo a heart transplant, so he has been consulting me on treatment options. I didn't have anything before. Method, now that I see the artificial heart, I instantly have hope."
The older doctor said with excitement.
Wang Dali pondered and said: "As you can see, it is still undergoing animal experiments and is still far away from being launched on the market. However, the registration work has been completed and we are working towards clinical application."
"We have already prepared the materials for the pump, the edges of the collar, the wires, and various accessories. At the same time, we have long-term suppliers for each part of the parts, so that once the clinical trial is approved, we can , the product can be quickly launched and benefit most heart disease patients."
"But even if it is the fastest, I estimate it will take two or three years. After all, an important evaluation indicator of an artificial heart is the survival time after transplantation. This time is definitely longer than ordinary drug clinical trials."
"If your relative really can't wait, he can apply for a humanitarian exemption for surgery, so that he can use the artificial heart in the research and development stage in advance. Of course, this is the last resort. I still hope that he can recover as soon as possible."
The doctor's eyes became a little gloomy, he nodded and stopped talking.
Another younger doctor couldn't wait to ask: "Mr. Wang, my question is relatively simple. Do you have any requirements for experimental animals? Look, this time the animal experiment used pigs, how about next time?" Can’t it be replaced by a sheep?”
"Because the pig's aorta is very short, it is not easy to anastomose the blood vessels on the artificial heart to the aorta. It is a test of the doctor's skills. Sheep have longer necks and shallow chests, so the operation is not so difficult."
Dean Liu also explained: "This pump pumps blood from the left ventricle to the aorta, but the pig's chest is very deep and the location is not well exposed, making the suturing operation difficult."
"Also, although the heart beats very powerfully, it is actually like tofu. If you want to put stitches on the apex of the heart, it is like running threads on the tofu. If you are not careful, the flesh will rot."
"If it is an animal with a shallow chest like a sheep, the heart is better exposed and the difficulty is less. The sewing can be denser to ensure that the joint between the artificial heart and the myocardium is foolproof."
Wang Dali couldn't help laughing after hearing this, and immediately agreed.
"Of course you can. We have no requirements for experimental animals. As long as they are large animals, sheep or cows are all fine. As for surgery, we only look at the effect, and everything else doesn't matter."
The young doctor was very happy to hear this and asked: "Mr. Wang, I think this trial was apical implantation and only part of the ventricle was removed. So is it a ventricular assist device?"
Wang Dali said with a serious expression: "No, it is actually a fully artificial heart. In addition to the ventricular assist function, it can also completely replace the left and right ventricles to realize all functions of the heart."
"For the next trial, we will do it on sheep. This time we will remove both the left and right ventricles, completely replace the sheep's original heart, and then see how long the sheep can survive using this artificial heart."
The two doctors looked shocked, and their eyes widened in wonder.
"The total artificial heart can completely replace all the functions of the heart and can be charged wirelessly. If it can survive in the human body for a long time, it will be the final form of the artificial heart."
Even Dean Liu murmured to himself.
"Imagine that a 90-gram artificial heart is installed in the body. As long as you put a power bank in your pocket, you can charge it while doing whatever you want freely."
"What a wonderful thing this is for patients with severe heart failure."
The doctor who was consulting for his relatives suddenly grabbed Wang Dali's hand and asked in a trembling voice: "Mr. Wang, how long can this artificial heart last? Half a year? Or a year or two?"
He has made up his mind to wait until the day when his relatives can no longer hold on, and apply for humanitarian exemption surgery for him. Even if it only lasts for a year or two, it is still a life earned.
In his mind, Sanqing is the embodiment of high technology, so he has tried his best to extend his survival time.
Wang Dali smiled slightly and said calmly.
"Theoretical usage time is about fifteen years. Of course, there will definitely be discrepancies in practical applications."
"The specific time it can be used depends on the patient's own situation, but I estimate that it will be no problem if it is used for ten years. If it is well maintained, it may be able to be used until the end of the product's life."
As soon as these words came out, the three of them gasped at the same time.
"fifteen years?"
Dean Liu took out a hard breath, his head was already buzzing with shock.
Fifteen years, this has exceeded the longest use record of an artificial heart, and also exceeded the imagination of the three people.
If it can really be done, it will definitely set off a storm in the field of artificial organs.
I just don’t know what will happen when it comes to human clinical trials.
The three of them looked at the sleeping pig on the operating table at the same time, their eyes burning.
By 5 p.m., the pig woke up on the operating table and was successfully extubated.
An hour later, I urinated another 1000ml smoothly and my vital signs were stable.
Wang Dali went home to have dinner and rushed back again.
In full view of everyone, the pig stood up tremblingly on the operating table and let out a "hum" sound.
Bang bang bang!
Thunderous applause broke out instantly.
Wang Dali breathed a sigh of relief, a smile bloomed on his face, and he clapped his hands vigorously.
He slapped it so hard that it hurt his palms and he didn't even feel anything.
When the applause finally stopped, his entire palm was already red.
