The artificial heart was developed by a French company, CARMAT and has been approved for use and sale in Europe.

Last year, the company received U.S. FDA approval to begin studies and enroll 10 patients with end-stage biventricular heart failure—people who are suffering on the waiting list for a heart donor—and offer a life-saving bridge before transplant.

"We are encouraged that our patient is doing so well after the procedure Monday," said Dr. Carmelo Milano, a transplant surgeon and the principal investigator of the device study at Duke. "As we evaluate this device, we are both excited and hopeful that patients who otherwise have few to no options could have a lifeline."

The North Carolina patient, Matthew Moore, is just 39-years-old and was referred to Duke in June after a sudden, unexpected diagnosis of heart failure. Moore and his wife, Rachel, recently adopted their two-year-old foster son, Marshall, and arrived at Duke expecting only to undergo heart bypass surgery.