Cardiac surgery in solid organ transplant recipients: a clinical challenge

Due to continuous improvement of transplant medicine, the number of solid organ transplant recipients in need of cardiac surgery is constantly growing. The objective of this work was to compare different reports on outcomes in patients with previous solid organ transplant after cardiac surgery. Areas covered: Published studies containing data about solid organ transplant recipients: renal, hepatic, pancreas or combined were identified through med-line research. Reported outcomes were categorized according to short- and long term-follow up and the presence or absence of a match-group. All data reported was analyzed in a retrospective manner. Throughout the studies, authors have reported acceptable short term mortality and morbidity for solid organ transplant recipients, which however was increased when compared to matched population. Expert commentary: This review summarizes chief findings concerning cardiac surgery in recipients of solid organ transplantations, as reported in current literature, with the aim of highlighting clinical aspects, which play a potential role in the short and long term-outcome of these patients.