Update (October 31): According to an abstract to be presented November 5 at a meeting of the American Heart Association, the electrical activity of the transplanted pig heart, as measured by EKG, differed from expected patterns. STAT’s Morning Rounds newsletter notes that the finding “raises questions for the field of xenotransplantation.”
Update (May 5): MIT Technology Review reports that the heart David Bennett received was infected with porcine cytomegalovirus, a factor that may have contributed to his death.
Update (March 9): Transplant recipient David Bennett died yesterday, two months after his surgery, the University of Maryland Medical Center has announced. According to the university’s statement, the transplanted pig heart performed well for several weeks after the surgery with no signs of rejection, but Bennett's condition began deteriorating several days ago. “We remain optimistic and plan on continuing our work in future clinical trials,” surgeon Muhammad Mohiuddin says in the statement.
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