Heart Transplantation News and Research

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A heart transplant is an operation in which the diseased heart in a person is replaced with a healthy heart from a deceased donor. Ninety percent of heart transplants are performed on patients with end-stage heart failure.

Heart failure is a condition in which the heart is damaged or weakened and can't pump enough blood to meet the body's needs. "End-stage" means the condition has become so severe that all treatments, other than heart transplant, have failed.

Novel computer system can help inform future therapies for patients with inherited heart disease

An integrated, genomic computer system for precision cardiology has been created using clinical data that can help inform medical and surgical decisions to support future therapies for patients with inherited heart disease.

14 Jun 2021

FDA alerts health care providers to no longer implant heart failure patients with Medtronic's HVAD System

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is alerting health care providers to no longer implant end-stage heart failure patients with Medtronic's Heartware Ventricular Assist Device (HVAD) System due to a growing body of observational clinical comparisons that demonstrates a higher frequency of neurological adverse events and mortality associated with the system when compared to other commercially available devices, as well as complaints that the internal pump may delay or fail to restart.

3 Jun 2021

Study shows that heart transplantation using donation after cardiac death with NRP is feasible in the U.S.

A new study, presented today at the AATS 101st Annual Meeting, found that heart transplantation using donation after cardiac death (DCD) with normothermic regional perfusion (NRP) is feasible in the United States.

3 May 2021

Cell-free DNA tests can reduce the need for biopsies to detect rejection after heart transplant

A new study, presented today at the AATS 101st Annual Meeting, shows that non-invasive cell-free DNA tests can reduce the need for regular surveillance biopsies to detect early rejection in heart transplant patients. The study was the first of its kind to be performed on both adult and pediatric patients.

30 Apr 2021

Blood type-incompatible pediatric heart transplant shown to be as effective as the traditional approach

A pediatric heart transplant procedure pioneered by Canadian doctors--once deemed impossible--has been shown to be at least as effective as the traditional approach, according to newly published research in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health.

25 Mar 2021

Young, Black patients at higher risk of death in the first year after a heart transplant

Young, Black adults are more than twice as likely to die in the first year after a heart transplant when compared to same-age, non-Black heart transplant recipients, according to new research published today in Circulation: Heart Failure, an American Heart Association journal.

2 Feb 2021

iTHRIV announces recipients of health research pilot projects

The Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) hub partnership between Virginia Tech, the University of Virginia, Carilion Clinic, and Inova Health System has awarded $200,000 in funding to five research projects through the Pilot Translational and Clinical Studies Program. Multi-institutional teams of scientists, physicians, and engineers will study Parkinson's disease, celiac disease, pediatric heart transplant, pediatric telemedicine, and epilepsy.

15 Jan 2021

Heart transplantations: Larger case volumes correlate with higher survival probabilities

In a series of commissions awarded by the Federal Joint Committee (G-BA) to the Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care, the question is whether for certain surgical procedures, a correlation can be shown between the volume of services provided per hospital and the quality of treatment results.

28 Dec 2020

Potential treatment could reduce heart failure after a significant heart attack

While there are therapies to aid in overall heart health, there are very few preventative therapies for heart failure after a significant heart attack, a serious condition that has a very significant mortality.

24 Nov 2020

MRI exams can be safely performed in patients with non-MR compatible cardiac devices

MRI examinations can be performed safely in patients with non-MR compatible cardiac devices, including those who are pacemaker-dependent or have abandoned leads, according to a study published in Radiology: Cardiothoracic Imaging.

22 Oct 2020

Study: Mechanical pumps given to more patients following new heart transplant allocation policy

For the past two years, a different national allocation policy has been in effect in order to more fairly distribute hearts to those who require a life-saving transplant. People who need temporary mechanical pumps to support their hearts, like ECMO or a temporary LVAD, are now given high preference.

21 Oct 2020

Transplantation of pig hearts may solve chronic shortage of donor organs

The goal of harvesting hearts from pigs to solve the chronic shortage of these donor organs appears to be in reach, according to a new scientific review by researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH).

9 Oct 2020

Researchers receive $3.2 million to use AI for improving heart transplant outcomes

A team of researchers in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland Clinic, and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, were recently awarded a $3.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to enhance research for improving heart transplant outcomes for patients.

5 Oct 2020

Researchers identify roles of matrix stiffness and mechanotransduction in cardiac reprogramming

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in humans. Worldwide, as the population ages, the burden of treating heart failure is increasing; opportunities for heart transplantation cannot keep pace.

31 Aug 2020

Paired surgical approach improves chances for heart transplant in obese patients

Patients with obesity are at higher risk of developing heart failure. And yet, many obese patients face obstacles to getting heart transplants, as recovery is considered to be more challenging and risky in individuals with high body mass.

27 Jul 2020

PET imaging helps researchers to detect transplant patients with cardiac allograft vasculopathy

Myocardial blood flow and myocardial flow reserve have been identified as accurate indicators for graft failure after cardiac transplantation, according to a new study published in The Journal of Nuclear Medicine.

5 Mar 2020

TSF awards new grants to support research and education programs in cardiothoracic surgery

The Thoracic Surgery Foundation- the charitable arm of The Society of Thoracic Surgeons- has awarded 29 new grants totaling $1,047,500 in support of research and education programs in cardiothoracic surgery.

16 Feb 2020

BHF announces shortlist of four CVD research projects competing for £30 million award

The British Heart Foundation (BHF) today announced its shortlist of four research projects competing for a single £30 million award.

23 Jan 2020

MGH surgeons perform first-of-its-kind heart transplant in New England

A team of surgeons and specialists at Massachusetts General Hospital is announcing an achievement in transplant surgery today, having recently performed the largest number of adult heart transplants in the country using what are known as Donation after Circulatory Death donor hearts.

11 Jan 2020

Heart transplants from hepatitis C–positive donors could help overcome organ shortage

One-year survival was similar for adults with severe heart failure who received a heart transplant from a donor with hepatitis C compared to those who received hearts from donors who did not have hepatitis C, according to new research published today in the Journal of the American Heart Association, the open access journal of the American Heart Association.

8 Jan 2020