Heart transplantation is the surgical replacement of a failing heart with a healthy donor heart, undertaken for end-stage heart failure that no longer responds to medical or other surgical therapy. The procedure most commonly involves orthotopic transplantation, in which the recipient's diseased heart is removed and…
Heart transplantation is the surgical replacement of a failing heart with a healthy donor heart, undertaken for end-stage heart failure that no longer responds to medical or other surgical therapy. The procedure most commonly involves orthotopic transplantation, in which the recipient's diseased heart is removed and the donor organ implanted in its place, restoring cardiac output and relieving the systemic consequences of severe ventricular dysfunction. Candidacy depends on the severity of heart failure, the absence of contraindications, and donor-recipient matching by blood group, size, and immunological compatibility, with donor organ availability a persistent limiting factor. After transplantation, lifelong immunosuppression is required to prevent rejection, which may be acute or chronic and is monitored through clinical assessment, imaging, and biopsy. Recipients face characteristic long-term complications, including infection, malignancy, cardiac allograft vasculopathy, drug toxicity, and unusual presentations such as constrictive pericarditis, as well as the chronic pain and functional sequelae that can follow major thoracic transplantation. Success is measured by survival, graft function, and quality of life, and outcomes have improved with refinements in surgical technique, organ preservation, and immunosuppressive management. Research in this area addresses post-transplant complications and their recognition, immunosuppression and rejection, long-term outcomes, and the broader ethical and supply considerations surrounding donor organs.
8 peer-reviewed articles, ranked by relevance. Each links to its DOI.
The 8 articles above have been cited 20 times in the scholarly literature. Citation data via OpenAlex and Crossref, updated Jun 2026.
A sample of recent works citing this journal's research on Heart Transplantation, linking to each citing work.