8th October when the heart beats

BLOG 19/2025 dt 08.10.2025

8^th October is a day when Hopps gave hope to heart to beat again. Canada’s biomedical engineer John Hopps is the inventor of the instrument that keeps the heart alive, a Cardiac Pacemaker. Based on the technology invented by Hopps, the first pacemaker was developed by Engineer Rune Elmqvist, a Swedish Physician turned Engineer. The first implantable pacemaker was implanted on 8^th October 1958 by Surgeon Ake Senning into the chest of Arne Larsson, a 43 years old man. The Pacemaker consisted of 2 transistors and was assembled in a mold of empty Kiwi Shoe Polish tin.

The first pacemaker lasted only for 3 hours and the second for a few more days. Larsson, the person who took it first had to undergo 26 such procedures before his death in 2001. Incidentally, Hopps himself had to undergo a pacemaker implantation in 1984. The struggles of the Engineers and Doctors in those days have made it possible for today’s generation to get a fix for their dard-e- dil.

Statistics on pacemakers:

• Approximately 3 million people use pacemakers worldwide.
• Global market was valued at around $ 4.7 b in 2021.
• Modern pacemakers can include wireless communication features for remote monitoring.
• The survival rate for patients is around 90%.
• Approx 90% pacemaker implants are on men, reflecting gender disparity in cardiac care.

References:

https://bcmj.org/articles/john-hopps-and-pacemaker-history-and-detailed-overview-devices-indications-and

https://gitnux.org/pacemaker-statistics