Heart transplantation

Since the first human heart transplantation performed by Barnard on December 3, 1967, cardiac transplantation has now largely entered its third decade of clinical applicability. Up to the end of the seventies, the rather disappointing survival results mainly caused by the limited effectiveness of the immunosuppression therapy available at that time, maintained the clinical use of the procedure to a restricted number of no more than 20 to 30 patients each year world wide. The introduction in 1980 of Cyclosporine in the immunosuppression therapy has produced a tremendous improvement in the survival rate and has since promoted a spectacular resurgence of interest for heart transplantation which is presently a well established therapy for end stage congestive heart failure. Indeed, currently the real limiting factor of the treatment is the limited procurement of donor organs.