Treatment
Why is a lung transplant recommended?
Lung transplantation is indicated for patients with chronic, end-stage lung disease who are failing maximal medical therapy, or for whom no effective medical therapy exists. General indications include:
- Untreatable end-stage pulmonary disease of any etiology
- Substantial limitation of daily activities
- Limited life expectancy
- Ambulatory patient with rehabilitation potential
- Acceptable nutritional status
- Satisfactory psychosocial profile and emotional support system
Some of the diseases that may require a lung transplant among this population include:
- Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
- Cystic Fibrosis and Bronchiectasis for other causes
- Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis and non-specific Interstitial Pneumonia
- Pulmonary Hypertension
- Sarcoidosis
- Lymphangioleiomyomatosis
- Bronchoalveolar Carcinoma
- Re-Transplant Bronchiolitis Obliterans
- Bronchopulmonary dysplasia or chronic lung disease
- Heart disease or heart defects affecting the lungs
Lung transplants can now be performed in all ages - from newborn to adult. Your physician will discuss the lung transplant selection criteria with you.
What is involved in lung transplant surgery?
Once an organ becomes available to a patient, he or she will be immediately called to the hospital. This call can occur at any time, so one should always be prepared to go to the hospital if needed.
Once at the hospital, the patient will have some more final blood work and tests to confirm the match of the organ.
The patient will then go to the operating room. The transplant surgery may require from six to twelve hours, but can vary greatly depending on the type of surgery and on each individual case.
Single lung transplantation is performed with the patient under general anesthesia. It is not always necessary to have cardiopulmonary bypass (re-routing of the blood through a heart-lung bypass machine) with a single lung transplant.
However, if two separate lungs are transplanted, cardiopulmonary bypass is necessary. Heart-lung transplants always require the use of cardiopulmonary bypass.