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Biotech / Medical : World Heart Corp - WHRT and TSE/WHT
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To: Skeet Shipman who wrote (30)2/26/1997 11:55:00 AM
From: Fred J Bealle   of 500
 
Development always takes longer than you think it will. But 17 years 'til the VAD works, seems very long. If WHRT believed this, they would not be putting their own cash into a VAD.
At any rate, there are lots of cardiovascular techniques going on that are deplored by many medical authorities: the craze for cholesterol tests, the fad for bypass surgery. Bypass surgery has been flatly called useless (in most cases).
The VAD will not help people with stenosis---vascular diseases cannot be helped by a new pump. The VAD has a narrow logical target of those who have defective heart muscles or innervation. Anybody who has had a heart attack may have had scarring when heart muscle has died. Even if these people correct the cause of their disease (ie, diet), the muscle will never regenerate.
Of the relatively small group who cannot survive without a booster pump, the VAD looks to me like a wonderful idea. The human heart tolerates artificial valves and pacemakers very well (stats?); pumps are another story. Crude blood pumps bruise the blood and cannot work for more than hours or days. Hydraulic boosters like the Ottawa VAD have a great advantage in never touching the blood.
WHRT investors should not set their sights too high. But in a world where pig and baboon hearts are being considered, this VAD looks very good and deserves a chance.
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