THE WORLD'S FIRST HUMAN HEART TRANSPLANT
12. Fill in the chart below with the main facts about the world’s first human heart transplant.
On 3 December 1967, South African doctor, Dr Christiaan (Chris) Barnard, performed the world’s first human to human heart transplant at Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town, South Africa.
This extraordinary event, which was the start of a new era in medicine, took place inside Charles Saint operating room at Groote Schuur Hospital. After a decade of heart surgery, Barnard and his cardiothoracic team of thirty (which included his brother Marius), were well trained to perform the long operation. The recipient was Louis Washkansky, a fifty-three year old man with a debilitating heart condition. Washkansky received the heart of Denise Darvall, a young woman who was run over by a car just a day before and had been declared dead after suffering serious brain damage.
Her father, Edward Darvall agreed to the donation of his daughter’s heart and kidneys. The operation started shortly after midnight on a Saturday night and was completed the next morning just before 6 a.m. when the new heart in the chest of Louis Washkansky was electrically shocked to make it start beating again. After regaining consciousness he was able to talk and, on occasion, to walk. Unfortunately, his condition deteriorated and he died of pneumonia eighteen days after the heart transplant. The hospital authorities created the ‘Heart of Cape Town Museum’ to honour those who played a leading role in the surgical success. Operating rooms A and B are the original theatres and have been recreated to show an authentic representation of the ground-breaking operation.
| What | first human heart transplant |
|---|---|
| When | ................................ |
| Where | ................................ |
| Who | ................................ |
| Length of operation | ................................ |
| Heart donor | |
| Name: | ................................ |
| Cause of death: | ................................ |
| Heart recipient | |
| Name: | ................................ |
| Age: | ................................ |
13. Now answer the following questions.
1. How long had Barnard and his team been doing heart surgery?
2. Was the heart the only organ explanted from the donor’s body?
3. How was the heart restarted after the transplant?
4. How long did the recipient survive after the transplant?
5. What did the recipient die of?
