Heartfelt: Man Says Metal Heart Left Him Cold

Aug. 30, 2007 — -- Facing death in 2000 due to severe heart failure, Peter Houghton's London doctors extended his life by implanting a titanium device in his heart.

While the device has given him the ability to travel with his wife, work and even take part in a 91-mile charity walk, Houghton believes the robotic heart has somehow robbed him of his ability to love.

"I have become less emotional, quite substantially less emotional," he said.

Initially, Houghton believed the device would be temporary until he received a new heart. But seven years later, he has not received a new heart and believes the implant has made him less able to feel.

"I think it was fairly quickly after the operation I came to realize I wasn't going to feel the same way about things," he said. "I wasn't going to have the same values any more."

Like the movie character who believed he was unable to love because he had no heart, Houghton is a real-life tin man.

Houghton was the first recipient of the revolutionary Jarvik 2000, a titanium pump that helps his heart pump more blood. Doctors implanted it in his heart's left ventricle to propel blood throughout his body. An internal cable runs up his chest, out behind his ear and is connected to an exterior battery pack.

Normally, the Jarvik 2000 serves as a temporary bridge until a patient receives a heart transplant. Houghton is the longest-living person with the device.

Though his heart beats like others, Houghton said the feelings he once had are muted. He longs to bond with his son, and grandsons, but emotionally feels disconnected.

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His new emotions, or lack thereof, don't relate simply to people. Houghton said he now suddenly finds he has a careless attitude toward money and doesn't worry even if he has overspent on his credit cards.

Houghton's emotions may be connected to his heart. Researchers have found that the heart does react differently to a range of emotions.

For instance, when someone is angry or fearful the rhythm of the heart is chaotic, and on an EKG the graph is very jagged. The chaotic heart rhythm activates a part of the brain that controls stimulation and excitement.

But when people feel love or compassion the heart's rhythm is smooth and appears more like rolling hills. The slow rhythmic heart motion of love activates an area in the brain that allows you to feel calm and relaxed.

So the idea is that a device in Houghton's heart could change the rhythm of the heart and quite possibly affect his emotion.