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About -
Research -
CSR: Cardiac Sarcoidosis Registry -
FMD: Fibromuscular Dysplasia -
IRAD: International Registry of Acute Aortic Dissection -
MAQI2: Michigan Anticoagulation Quality Improvement Initiative -
MHYH: Project My Heart Your Heart -
PERT: Pulmonary Embolism Response Team -
PH: Pulmonary Hypertension -
PHS: Project Healthy Schools -
WMR: World Medical Relief
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Education -
People
Project My Heart Your Heart
Revitalizing Pacemaker Care Worldwide
Donate a Pacemaker
MHYH Donations
Support the My Heart is Your Heart project
As we enter the 21st century, the healthcare disparities between the industrialized world and those in underserved nations have become all too apparent. Cardiovascular disease has an increasing impact on morbidity and mortality in many developing countries, many of which already face a disproportionate burden of infections leading to abnormalities of the conduction system. Novel methods of delivering costly electrophysiological healthcare to impoverished nations are needed.
My Heart Your Heart is a collaboration between citizens, physicians, and funeral directors in the state of Michigan, the University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center, World Medical Relief, and teaching hospitals in several low and middle income countries. The purpose of the project is to create a central organization that obtains pacemakers post-mortem for evaluation and subsequent sterilization while creating a distribution network for safe reuse. Our goal is to create a reproducible model that other academic centers in the United States and Europe can emulate in order to create their own collaborative network for refurbished device distribution to those unable to afford bradycardia arrhythmia therapy. Thus far, Project My Heart Your Heart has received and interrogated more than 30,000 used devices, has completed pilot projects in several countries, and presented and published numerous abstracts and papers related to this work. The project currently has 7,500 eligible devices for the reconditioning process.
Project My Heart Your Heart received FDA and IRB approval to begin a randomized, multi-center study. The objective is to prove that postmortem pacemaker reutilization can be shown to be a safe and effective means of delivering care to patients in low and middle income countries without resources. Countries participating in this study include Sierra Leone, Venezuela, Kenya, Nigeria, and Ghana. Countries that have shown interest in further collaboration include Dominica, Mozambique, Pakistan, Philippines, Uganda, Rwanda, Cape Verde, St. Thomas and Prince, Angola, East Timor, and Guinea-Bissau. To date, over 60 patients have been randomized to either a new or refurbished pacemaker in 3 different countries.
How a Pacemaker is Recycled for Reimplantation Abroad
Recycled Pacemakers Offer Treatment Outside the U.S.
Site Map
My Heart Your Heart (MMYH)
- MMYH Coordinating Center, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
- MMYH Lab: WMR, Southfield, MI, USA
Sites Participating in Clinical Trial:
- Eldoret, Kenya
- Monterrey, Mexico
- Maputo, Mozambique
- Lashiri, Nigeria
- Port Harcourt, Nigeria
- Asuncion, Paraguay
- Freetown, Sierra Leone
- Barquisimeto, Venezuela
Humanitarian Devices Sent to Countries:
- Accra, Ghana
- Kumasi, Ghana
- Port Au Prince, Haiti
- Tegucigalpa, Honduras
- Lagos, Nigeria
- Port Harcourt, Nigeria
- Kiev, Ukraine
- Odessa, Ukraine
- Barquisimeto, Venezuela
Principal Investigators
Thomas Christopher Crawford, MD, FACC, FHRS
Internal Medicine
Clinical Professor of Internal Medicine
Program Associate
Internal Medicine
Medical Director
UMMG
Medical School
Kim A Eagle
Professor of Internal Medicine
Medical Director
Patient Facilitated Services
Program Director
Medical School Administration
co-Director Frankel Cardiovascular Center
Medical School and Professor of Health Management and Policy
School of Public Health
Resources
Publications
Patients' and family members' views on pacemaker reuse: An international survey
Reuse of catheters and devices labelled for single use: evidence, recommendations and oversight
Using Reconditioned Pacemakers to Treat Bradycardia in Africa
Pacemaker recycling: A notion whose time has come(link is external)
Cleaning and Sterilization of Used Cardiac Implantable Electronic Devices With Process Validation
Heart Rhythm Society Members' Views on Pacemaker and Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator Reuse
Reuse of Pacemakers Comparison of Short and Long-term Performance
Feasibility of postmortem device acquisition for potential reuse in underserved nations
Pacemaker Reuse for Patients in Resource Poor Countries - Is Something Always Better Than Nothing
Cardiac Device Reutilization: Is It Time to "Go Green" in Underserved Countries?
The ethics of pacemaker reuse- might the best be the enemy of the good
Safety and Efficacy of Pacemaker Reuse in Underdeveloped Nations
Pacemaker Reuse in a 65-Year-Old Woman in the Philippines with Severe Medical Need
Post-Mortem Cardiac Device Retrieval for Re-Use in Third World Nations: Views of Funeral Directors
Collaborators
World Medical Relief was established in 1953 to address the needs of Korean War orphans. Over the years, the organization has expanded its mission to impact the well-being of the medically impoverished on a local, national and international basis and provided medical aid to thousands of under served people in the Detroit metropolitan area and in over 130 developing nations worldwide. WMR achieves this through the collection of financial donations and goods, including medical, dental and laboratory items, as well as through the purchase and distribution of such commodities. Goods are distributed in a non-discriminatory manner without regard to race, color, gender, religion, nationality or political beliefs.
Arrhythmia Alliance Pace4Life (A-A P4L) is a registered non-profit charity that provides cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs) such as pacemakers and implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) and training to cardiac teams to upskill or to establish device implant services to those in low and middle-income countries (LMIC) or where they would not otherwise be able to access these life-saving treatments. We source CIEDs, identify viable clinics in LMIC and set up programs at these clinics. We also facilitate the training of personnel, organise implant missions, and provide ongoing online support to those programs. We source devices from two main areas: those that are out of shelf life in UK National Health Service (NHS) Hospitals and explanted devices from patients via funeral directors or hospitals.
UK Registered Charity Number: 1107496
US Registered Non-Profit 501(c)(3)
Northeast Scientific is a leading medical device remanufacturer company. We provide high quality remanufactured catheters and medical devices. Request a quote.
Implant Recycling recycles the metallic bi-products of the cremation process. Additionally, they manufacture, maintain, and repair cremation equipment and provide cremation supplies to their customers. Implant Recycling has worked with the program My Heart Your Heart since 2010 and has collected over 100,000 pacemakers.
Mid-States Recycling: Cremation Recycling: Mid-States Recycling specializes in accurate, verifiable precious metal refining services.
Garfield Refining: Gold Refinery & Precious Metal Scrap Refining is a long-running precious metals refinery specializing in refining and recycling scrap gold, silver, platinum, and palladium. It was formed in 1892.
Project Manager
Eric Puroll, BS CCRP | Constantina Alexandris-Souphis, RN BSN BS
Domino’s Farm |24 Frank Lloyd Wright | PO Box 363
Ann Arbor MI| 48106
