The Jarvik 7
(Collections of The Bakken Museum, Minneapolis)
People around the world were amazed when Dr. William DeVries implanted the first successful artificial heart into patient Barney Clark in 1982. Designed by Dr. Robert Jarvik to replace a damaged heart, this Jarvik 7 unit was one of many packaged for shipment when the FDA decided it wanted more tests performed. Even though these $25,000 devices passed the tests, the FDA insisted that the manufacturer could not sell them, but had to make new ones to carry its stamp of approval.
