Stretching the Cardiac Donor Ischemic Time to Beyond Six Hours: What’s the Impact?-Juniper Publishers
JUNIPER PUBLISHERS - OPEN ACCESS JOURNAL OF CARDIOLOGY & CARDIOVASCULAR THERAPY Introduction An estimated 5.1 million Americans ≥20 years of age have heart failure. By 2030, the prevalence of HF is believed to increase by 25% [1]. The International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT) registers upto 3,500-4,000 heart transplants worldwide every year. The number of transplants done annually have been quite static over last 20 years despite the growing heart failure population. The shortage of donor hearts has clearly limited the number of heart transplantations [2]. This disparity in organ (heart) demand and the ever increasing shortage of donors has led to a need to expand the donor eligibility criteria. This has led to accepting the donor organs from remote places, with the anticipated prolonged ischemic times. Although donor ischemic times up to 4-5 hours are generally acceptable, the benefits of ischemic times in excess of 240-300 minutes are sti...