MAN WITHOUT A
HEARTBEAT, BUT VERY MUCH ALIVE!Canadian, Gerard Langevin from Quebec, is reported to be the only person alive
without a pulse. Following a heart failure, a silent pump was embedded in his chest, on the 23rd of November this year. The pump keeps blood gushing through his veins. Since there is a continuous flow of blood, there is no pulse beat. And therefore, this 65 year old has no measurable blood pressure! The doctors had the implant done as he was considered unfit for a heart transplant.A spokesperson for the mechanical heart maker, Thoratec, said that so far 400 patients, in Europe and America had received similar implants — the size of a standard D flashlight battery — but all of them had some level of heart muscle contractions. The case ofLangevin is an exception.
But imagine this scenario: If a person without a
heartbeat is involved in an accident, and were to be lying on the ground without a pulse beat, but breathing normally, it could confuse health workers! The patient himself, is a bit unfazed about the turn of events, but is very much
alive.