HEART-TRANSPLANTATION IN PATIENTS 70 YEARS OF AGE AND OLDER - INITIALEXPERIENCE

Background. Heart transplantation has become a highly successful thera peutic option for patients with end-stage cardiomyopathy. Consequently , the criteria for patient selection, particularly regarding recipient s' upper age limits, have been expanded, with an increasing number of people older than 60 years of age now undergoing transplantation. Meth ods. A retrospective analysis of 6 patients 70 years of age and older who underwent heart transplantation was done; their clinical courses a nd outcomes were compared with those of younger patients, with a speci al emphasis on their posttransplantation quality of life. Results. All 6 patients are alive and clinically well at a mean follow-up of 12 mo nths. No age-related complications have been observed, and their quali ty of life is excellent. There has been a very low incidence of reject ion, as well as few episodes of rejection. Conclusions. Heart transpla ntation in selected people 70 years of age and older can be performed successfully with a morbidity comparable to that seen in younger patie nts and excellent short-term survival. This initial experience is enco uraging, but further studies and longterm follow-up are needed to vali date the more routine application of this therapy.