Does listing for heart transplant for longer than 30 days before ventricular assist device implantation influence utilization of psychotherapeutic support and outcome?

Objectives: Previous studies indicate that patients with mechanical ventricular assist devices (VADs) experience high psychosocial and emotional distress. Listing for transplant may trigger psychosocial adjustment to the transplantation as an upcoming critical life-event. We hypothesized that patients could profit from this adaptation when implantation of a VAD becomes necessary.

Supportive psychotherapy for patients with heart transplantation or ventricular assist devices.

Objective: Both heart transplant (HTX) candidates and patients on ventricular assist device (VAD) support suffer from severe heart failure and have to fear life-threatening complications. For both patient groups, the importance of screening for and treatment of psychosocial problems and mental disorders to optimize compliance and survival has been acknowledged. We compared the use of psychotherapeutic support by patients with primary HTX, on VAD support, either on destination therapy or to be transplanted, and successfully bridged to transplant.