Massachusetts General Hospital implanted its first World Heart Corp. (NSDQ:WHRT) Levacor ventricular assist device.

It’s the eleventh implantation of the Levacor device for the Salt Lake City-based cardiac assist device maker’s so-called bridge-to-transplant trial since the study began in August 2009, according to a press release.

MGH cardiac surgeon Dr. Thomas MacGillivray said the Levacor VAD allows the hospital to offer an additional bridge-to-transplant option to late-stage heart failure patients.

Mass. General joined World Heart’s BTT study in June 2010 and, with the successful operation, became the fifth site to implant the device. In late July, World Heart won Food & Drug Administration approval to expand the Levacor clinical trial from 10 to 20 sites.