Patient and care provider inclusion in the development of an educational graphic novel for heart transplanted teenagers.

Purpose: Teenagers experience high rates of rejection and organ failure after heart transplantation due to non-adherence to medications, poor transition into adult care, and difficulties communicating with adults including healthcare providers. This project aimed to creatively bridge this gap-including teenage patients, their parents, and healthcare providers in the development of a new resource meant to motivate teenage heart-transplant-patients to take interest and ownership of their long-term health.

Methods: Four teenage heart-transplanted patients, four parents, and three healthcare providers provided insight into relevant content for an educational resource through semi-standardized questionnaires and interviews.

Alterations in the immune phenotype of thymectomized children and the development of atopic disorders after heart transplantation.

Background: Atopic disorders are more common in children after heart transplant (HTx). We hypothesized that HTx at an early age and thymus excision (TE) affect development of T and B cells, especially regulatory T cells (Tregs), which help maintain tolerance.

Methods: In this single-center study including 24 patients transplanted between 2013 and 2018, we investigated lymphocyte patterns in relation to these factors using flow cytometry.

Allergies and autoimmune disorders in children after heart transplantation.

Pediatric heart transplantation requires lifelong immune suppression and may require thymectomy, both of which alter T-cell repertoires. We hypothesized that atopic and autoimmune diseases are more common in pediatric heart transplant patients than the general population, and that transplantation in early childhood increases the risk of development or worsening of atopic or autoimmune disease. A cross-sectional single-center study including 21 heart transplant patients aged ≤18 years was conducted.