Extended Donor Criteria Outcomes in Adult Congenital Heart Disease Patients Undergoing Heart Transplantation in the United States.

There are very few published outcomes for the use of extended criteria donor (ECD) organs in adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) patients undergoing cardiac transplantation. We investigated outcomes with the use of ECD organs in this population. We hypothesized that ECD organs may be safely used in this population in patients who are younger and carry less vascular and renal disease than the general cardiac transplant population.

Two case reports of fulminant giant cell myocarditis treated with rabbit anti-thymocyte globulin.

Background: Giant cell myocarditis (GCM) is an inflammatory form of acute heart failure with high rates of cardiac transplantation or death. Standard acute treatment includes multi-drug immunosuppressive regimens. There is a small but growing number of case reports utilizing rabbit anti-thymocyte globulin in severe cases.

Biventricular Assist Devices as a Bridge to Heart Transplantation Under the New Donor Heart Allocation System in the United States.

Biventricular assist devices (BiVADs) for pre-heart transplant care is rare. The outcomes of pretransplant BiVAD support after the 2018 heart transplant allocation policy change are entirely unknown at this time. The United Network of Organ Sharing database was retrospectively queried from October 2018 to June 2022 to identify patients supported to transplant with BiVADs.

Transmethylamine-N-Oxide Is Associated With Diffuse Cardiac Fibrosis in People Living With HIV.

Background People living with HIV are at increased risk of developing diastolic dysfunction, heart failure, and sudden cardiac death, all of which have been characterized by higher levels of myocardial fibrosis. Transmethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO), a dietary gut metabolite, is linked to the development of myocardial fibrosis in animal models. However, it is unclear whether TMAO plays a role in the development of myocardial fibrosis in people living with HIV.