How long did the first recipient of an artificial heart live? Barney Clark, the retired dentist who received the first artificial heart on December 2, 1982, lived with it for 112 days, when physical complications caused by the artificial implant caused his death. In 1986, William Schroeder became the second person to get an artificial heart, also called a Jarvik-7; he lived for 620 days. The Jarvik-7 was named for its inventor, Dr. Robert Jarvik. He made a device from aluminum and plastic to replace the two lower chambers of the natural heart. Two rubber diaphragms were used to pump the new organ. The entire mechanism was attached to a very large external compressor which kept the heart beating. Since the patient had to be constantly connected to this machine, his freedom of movement and quality of life were limited. The Jarvik-7 came to be used to keep a patient alive until an appropriate donor of a natural heart was found.
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