Cardiac valve operations after solid organ transplantation: A single-center experience

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular Surgery
• Transplant Surgery
• Immunology

Background:

• Cardiac valve operations in solid organ transplant recipients are complex due to comorbidities and immunosuppression.
• These procedures require careful consideration of unique patient factors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the outcomes of cardiac valve operations performed at the time of or after solid organ transplantation.
• To present the experience with managing cardiac valvular pathology in transplant recipients.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective review of patients who underwent cardiac valve operations post-solid organ transplantation between 1998 and 2019.
• Analysis of patient records, including comorbidities, surgical details, and follow-up data up to 15 years.

Main Results:

• 127 patients (0.9% of all valve surgeries) had prior solid organ transplantation.
• In-hospital mortality was 20%, with higher complication rates in endocarditis or concomitant surgery cases.
• Survival conditioned to hospital discharge was 73% at 5 years, 58% at 10 years, and 50% at 15 years.

Conclusions:

• Cardiac valve surgery in solid organ transplant recipients is associated with significant postoperative complications.
• Despite challenges, survival outcomes conditioned to hospital discharge are satisfactory, highlighting the feasibility of these interventions.