Heart Transplant
Stanford is recognized worldwide as a pioneering center for heart transplants.
Dr. Norman Shumway and his colleagues developed the experimental basis for transplants in their early work, which then paved the way for the first adult heart transplant in the United States at Stanford in 1968.
Since then, the Stanford team has developed many innovations and continues to advance new techniques in transplant surgery. To date, our medical teams have performed more than 1,200 heart transplants.
In 1981, the first successful heart-lung transplant was performed at Stanford Hospital by Dr. Bruce Reitz and his colleagues. This was made possible by the use of the immunosuppressive drug cyclosporine, and by previous laboratory research performed at Stanford.
The team has been performing lung transplantation longer than anyone else and continues to make new advances.
At Stanford, more than 190 patients have received a heart-lung transplant, and over 200 patients have received either a single-lung or double-lung transplant.
Innovations, which have been introduced in the transplant field from Stanford, include:
- The operative method for heart transplantation
- The use of percutaneous, transvenous biopsy of the heart to detect rejection
- The use of new immunosuppressive drugs, including cyclosporine, for treatment of rejection
- The first successful heart-lung transplantation procedure
- The first successful use of a mechanical device or LVAD (left ventricular assist device) as a bridge to heart transplantation
- The first use of a living related donor for lung transplantation
- New methods for preserving the lung prior to transplantation and for detecting and treating rejection
Heart transplant patients benefit from a cardiac transplant team consisting of highly experienced transplant surgeons, both pre-operative and post-operative transplant cardiologists, specialized social workers, and dedicated transplant nurse coordinators.
The lung transplant team comprises medical pulmonologists, surgeons, transplant nurse coordinators, specialized social workers, and intensive-care nurses experienced in both heart and lung transplantation.
Approximately 40 to 50 patients undergo heart transplantation each year at Stanford, whereas an additional 12 to 20 patients receive some type of lung transplant. The procedures are performed in patients from newborns to adults over 60 years of age.
Almost every type of end-stage heart disease has been treated, and the Stanford team remains a leader in introducing new concepts and treatments to improve outcomes for transplant patients.
We consistently measure the outcomes of health care services to track our performance and to inspire us to be even better. According to the data presented in our cardiovascular outcomes report, we continue to have outstanding patient outcomes despite the fact that we serve higher-risk populations.
Additionally, the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) has recently developed a comprehensive rating system that allows for comparisons regarding the quality of cardiac surgery among hospitals across the country. Approximately 14 percent of hospitals receive the “3 star” rating, which denotes the highest category of quality. In the current analysis of national data covering the period from July 2007 to June 2008, the cardiac surgery performance of our hospital was found to lie in the highest quality tier, thereby receiving an STS 3 star rating.