Apparatus for testing, assessment, and maintenance of harvested hearts for transplanting

An apparatus for perfusing excised donor hearts, comprising:

• a support for supporting an excised donor heart;
• a plurality of conduits for connecting a reservoir of a perfusate to the heart supported on the support to circulate the perfusate through the heart, said conduits comprising a first cannula for cannulation into an atrium of the heart, and a second cannula for cannulation into an aorta of the heart;
• a servo-actuated partial occlusion clamp connected to the first cannula for automated control of a fluid flow through the first cannula;
• an afterload pump in fluid communication with said second cannula, said afterload pump configured and operable to selectively apply an afterload pressure to the aorta to resist circulation of the perfusate through the heart when said clamp is opened to allow the perfusate to enter the atrium through said first cannula;
• and
• a controller in electronic communication with said clamp and said afterload pump, and configured to automatically control operation of said clamp and said afterload pump for regulating circulation of the perfusate through the heart.