He lived without a Heart for 48 days
“I got my life back!” The remarkable story of Louis James Quarterman
MIAMI, FLORIDA – September 6, 2006 – He was referred to as the man without a heart. Louis James Quarterman, 61, was kept alive for more than a month without a heart as he awaited a transplant – reportedly the first successful case of its kind in Florida. After receiving a new heart on June 8th, and a new kidney two days later, a bumpy recovery took a positive turn when in late July his condition began to progress quickly and remarkably.
“All of a sudden, it was as if everything just fell into place,” explained Julio C. Albornoz, N.P., nurse practitioner with the heart and lung transplantation and artificial devices program at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center, who is providing follow-up care. “He is now standing and walking all on his own and is showing excellent progress.” Quarterman may have gone without a heart but never without love. His daughter, Rajii Quarterman, 33, has been by his side the entire time. She has seen her father through a difficult period of organ failure and has even left her work to care for him full-time. “He is back to being a handful – in a good way,” she says jokingly about her father sudden recovery. “His energy and spirit are back, and he is such a delight.” “This wouldn’t have been possible without her,” said Louis Quarterman of his daughter’s support. He is feeling “terrific” and looking forward to rehabilitation.
Quarterman is believed to be the first patient in Florida to be kept alive successfully without a heart. On April 21, 2006, Si M. Pham, M.D., director of heart and lung transplantation at UM/Jackson, removed Quarterman’s heart and performed the revolutionary procedure with complete success. “Removing the heart was needed to give Mr. Quarterman a better chance to heal and resist infections, “ explained Dr. Pham. During that surgery, Dr. Pham’s team implanted a bi-ventricular assist device and removed the failing heart that had been transplanted 12 years ago. After building the right and left atria from synthetic grafts, mechanical pumps were implanted to perform the functions of the removed heart. Quarterman displayed an ideal response to the procedure and was breathing and walking on his own. He awaited his new heart and kidney in good health but with memories of his other daughter, Adrienne, who died in 1997 at the age of 29, while also waiting for a heart and kidney transplant.
Quarterman’s new heart was transplanted on June 8, 2006, followed by a kidney transplant two days after. His immediate response included physical rejection of the new organs. After two months, however, his condition stabilized. He will soon begin rehabilitation to build his muscles and gain physical strength. UM/Jackson ranks among the top U.S. medical centers for total solid organ transplantation. Medical teams perform over 400 life-saving adult and pediatric transplants each year. The UM/Jackson Transplant Center welcomes patients needing transplants, regardless of the severity or complexity of an individual’s condition. The program offers excellent care through a multidisciplinary team, state-of-the-art treatments, the latest immunosuppressive therapies, and all the resources of South Florida’s largest academic medical center. Support from the transplant team is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. UM/Jackson Transplant Center is a member of the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), the central U.S. agency responsible for equitable allocation of organs. This affiliation offers patients the best opportunities to receive new organs, and enjoy a longer and better quality of life.
Jackson Health System
News Release 9/6/2006 | 
