Heart transplantation involves replacing the heart with another, from an individual with brain death and compatible with that of the patient with life-threatening heart disease.
Thus, surgery is performed only in cases of severe heart disease and, endangering the patient’s life, and is performed in the hospital, requiring hospitalization for 1 month and after discharge to avoid organ rejection.
- Heart transplantation is performed by a medical team specialized in a properly equipped hospital.
- As it is a complex and delicate surgery.
- Where the heart is removed and replaced by a compatible heart.
- However.
- Part of the heart of the patient’s heart still remains.
Surgery is performed by following these steps
The heart transplant takes a few hours and after transplantation the person is transferred to the intensive care unit and has to stay in the hospital for about 1 month to recover and avoid infections.
There is an indication for a heart transplant in case of severe late-stage heart disease, which cannot be solved by ingesting medications or other surgeries and endangering the individual’s life, such as:
Transplantation can affect people of all ages, from newborns to the elderly, however, the indication of heart transplantation will also depend on the condition of other organs, such as the brain, liver and kidneys, because if they are seriously compromised, the individual may not benefit from the transplant.
Contraindications for heart transplantation include
cancer
Although contraindications exist, the doctor always evaluates the risks and benefits of surgery and, with the patient, decides whether or not surgery should be performed.
Risks of heart transplantation include
Despite these risks, the survival of transplanted people is high and most live more than 10 years after transplantation.
Heart transplantation can be performed in SUS-affiliated hospitals in some cities, such as Recife and Sao Paulo, and the delay depends on the number of donors and the queue of people who need this organ.
Important precautions a transplant recipient should take after a heart transplant include:
These precautions should be followed for life and the transplanted person can lead a virtually normal life and even perform physical activity. More information: Postoperative heart surgery.