Heart Transplant

A heart transplant is the replacement of a patient’s diseased heart with a healthy heart from a donor who has suffered brain death. The donor’s heart is completely removed and quickly transported to the operating theatre. During the operation, the patient is placed on a heart-lung machine which pumps blood throughout the rest of the body. The patient’s heart is removed, leaving the back walls of the heart’s upper chambers. The back chambers on the new heart are opened and the heart is sewn into place. The blood vessels are then connected and blood flow through the heart and lungs is resumed. As the heart warms up, it begins beating.

Patients are usually up and around a few days after the heart transplant. If there are no signs of the body rejecting the organ and other post-operative complications, patients are fit to go home within two weeks.