Maintenance of the circulation in vivo by an implanted automatically controlled artificial heart

An artificial heart in which the output is automatically controlled by the venous return, when implanted into dogs in the orthotopic position was found to be highly sensitive to changes in the hemodynamic conditions (a decrease in the venous return, hypo- and hypervolemia, increased peripheral resistance) and prevented the development of critical situations. For 24 h the principal vital functions of the experimental animals were maintained.