The rabbit autoperfusing heart-lung preparation

The autoperfusing heart-lung preparation holds promise as a method for extended organ preservation. Further understanding of the hemodynamics, metabolism, and quality of tissue preservation of this preparation may increase the number of available organs for heart-lung transplantation. We describe the materials and operative technique for a small animal model of the autoperfusing heart-lung preparation. The method is easy to learn, the materials and animal subjects are inexpensive, and the preparation is fully monitored to provide consistent and reproducible data. The rabbit autoperfusing heart-lung preparation is an excellent vehicle for the investigator studying warm organ preservation.