Our experience in cardiac transplantation in Baskent University

Recently cardiac transplantation has an important place in treatment of end-stage cardiac failure. In Turkey between 2003 and 2005 at 10 centers 64 cardiac transplantations were performed including five at our facility. Herein we have presented our results. All patients were men of mean age 34.2 +/- 10.7 (17 to 44) years. Upon preoperative echocardiography their mean ejection fraction was 18% +/- 3.27% (17% to 23%). Pulmonary vascular resistance was 4.47 wood unit in one patient and in one case, there was Rh incompatibility between donor and recipient. We used HTK solution for protection of donor hearts. Mean ischemia time was 251.2 +/- 62.7 minutes (155 to 314). Mean aortic clamping time was 84 +/- 4.7 minutes (80 to 90). In all patients we performed a biatrial anastomosis technique. Hemofiltration was used to prevent hemodilution during operation. In the postoperative period four patients had acute renal dysfunction; one, a minor cerebrovascular accident; two, reoperated because of bleeding; one, cholestasis; one, temporary atrio-ventricular block; and one, mediastinitis. Mean follow-up time was 15.6 +/- 19.7 months (2 to 50). Neither early nor late mortality has occurred. All patients are in New York Heart Association class I. In all cases we used triple immunosuppressive therapy. In the follow-up period the mean number of cardiac biopsies per patient was 4.2 +/- 3.03 (2 to 8). Two cases had cardiac catheterization. As a complication of cardiac biopsy, pericardial tamponade developed in one patient; in another one we observed a right ventricular aneursym after cardiac biopsy. Cardiac transplantation was performed with low mortality and morbidity rates in end-stage cardiac failure patients with longer life expectancy and higher life quality. Unfortunately in our country, because of difficulties to find donor hearts, cardiac transplantations were small in number. For better results, we need a larger series.