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New Issues in Heart Transplantation for Heart Failure

  • Heart Failure (J Fang, Section Editor)
  • Published:
Current Treatment Options in Cardiovascular Medicine Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Opinion statement

Heart transplantation is the preferred therapy for patients with end-stage heart failure with refractory symptoms despite optimal medical and device therapy. The major impediment to survival is rejection and infection in the short term and cardiac allograft vasculopathy and malignancy in the long term. Current therapies are focused on the prevention and treatment of rejection and limiting the long-term problems of cardiac allograft vasculopathy and malignancy. Advances in monitoring assays now allow better assessment of rejection and the level of immune response. This will allow clinicians, in the future, to tailor current therapies to the needs of individual heart transplant recipients to maximize benefit and minimize toxicity.

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References and Recommended Reading

Papers of particular interest, published recently, have been highlighted as: • Of importance •• Of major importance

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  1. 8536 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 301, Beverly Hills, CA, 90211, USA

    Michelle M. Kittleson MD, PhD

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  1. Michelle M. Kittleson MD, PhD
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Correspondence to Michelle M. Kittleson MD, PhD.

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Kittleson, M.M. New Issues in Heart Transplantation for Heart Failure. Curr Treat Options Cardio Med 14, 356–369 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11936-012-0184-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11936-012-0184-7

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