2.4.10

Heart Failure

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Treatment of Heart Failure

In the extreme case of heart failure, patients may require a donor heart to be transplanted. Immediate transplantation is not always possible. This means that patients can be kept alive using artificial hearts whilst they wait for a donor heart.

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Benefits of artificial hearts

  • Artificial hearts are unlikely to be rejected by the patient’s immune system, so immunosuppressant drugs (prevent rejection) are unnecessary.
  • Artificial hearts can also be used to provide the heart with some rest to allow it to recover.
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Drawbacks of artificial hearts

  • Artificial hearts can result in long and expensive stays in hospital.
  • They can also cause blood clotting, which can potentially lead to strokes.

Jump to other topics

1Cell Biology

1.1What's in Cells?

1.2Cell Division

1.3Transport in Cells

2Organisation

2.1Principles of Organisation

2.2Enzymes

2.3Circulatory System

2.4Non-Communicable Diseases

2.5Plant Tissues, Organs & Systems

3Infection & Response

4Bioenergetics

5Homeostasis & Response

5.1Homeostasis

5.2The Human Nervous System

5.3Hormonal Coordination in Humans

5.4Plant Hormones

6Inheritance, Variation & Evolution

7Ecology

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