Myocardial protection by blood cardioplegia and warm reperfusion in heart transplantation.
We describe the technique of blood cardioplegia delivery as we routinely use it in clinical heart transplantation. This technique needs a specific circuit. Perfusion of a first dose of blood cardioplegia is immediately started on the arrival of the graft in the operating room. Cardiac reperfusion of a half-dose of blood solution without potassium is performed each 20 minutes. Myocardial warm reperfusion is started at the end of the aortic suture. This technique of blood cardioplegia and warm reperfusion during heart transplantation provided an improvement in heart preservation when compared with standard crystalloid solution.
Nataf
P
P
Service de Chirurgie Cardiovasculaire, Hôpital de la Pitié, Paris, France.
Pavie
A
A
Bracamontes
L
L
Bors
V
V
Cabrol
C
C
Gandjbakhch
I
I
D001769:Blood; D006324:Heart Arrest, Induced / Q000379:methods*; D016027:Heart Transplantation; D006801:Humans; D015425:Myocardial Reperfusion / Q000379:methods*; D013696:Temperature