Peritransplant injury to the myocardium associated with the development of accelerated arteriosclerosis in heart transplant recipients.

Accelerated arteriosclerosis is now the major long-term complication of heart transplantation. Defining the risk factors associated with the development of accelerated arteriosclerosis will provide not only a means of identifying patients at risk for this complication but also clues to the etiology of accelerated arteriosclerosis. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between peritransplant myocardial ischemic injury and the development of accelerated arteriosclerosis.