Artificial hearts approved by 2015? Human trials ending next year 11/15/2013 - 00:00 Carmat hopes to finish human trials of its artificial heart by the end of next year and to obtain regulatory approval for an EU launch by early 2015, its chief executive told Reuters.The French company is also seeking a partner in the United States to enter the world's largest healthcare market, and is in contact with Johnson & Johnson, Medtronic, St Jude Medical and Edwards Lifesciences, Marcello Conviti said.Heart assistance devices have been in use for decades as a temporary solution for patients awaiting a transplant but Carmat's product is designed to replace the heart for up to five years, mimicking nature's work using biological materials and sensors. It targets the thousands of patients who die each year while waiting for a donor.
