title: Comprehensive evaluation of lung allograft function in infants after lung and heart-lung transplantation.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Limited data exist on methods to evaluate allograft function in infant recipients of lung and heart-lung transplants. At our institution, we developed a procedural protocol in coordination with pediatric anesthesia where infants were sedated to perform infant pulmonary function testing, computed tomography imaging of the chest, and flexible fiberoptic bronchoscopy with transbronchial biopsies.
  
  
  METHODS
  A retrospective review was performed of children aged younger than 1 year who underwent lung or heart-lung transplantation at our institution to assess the effect of this procedural protocol in the evaluation of infant lung allografts.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Since 2005, 5 infants have undergone thoracic transplantation (3 heart-lung, 2 lung). At time of transplant, the mean ± standard deviation age was 7.2 ± 2.8 months (range, 3-11 months). Of 24 procedural sessions performed to evaluate lung allografts, 83% (20 of 24) were considered surveillance where the patients were completely asymptomatic. Of the surveillance procedures, 80% were performed as an outpatient, whereas 20% were done as inpatients during the lung or heart-lung transplant post-operative period before discharge home. Sedation was performed with propofol alone (23 of 24) or in addition to ketamine (1 of 24) infusion; mean sedation time was 141 ± 39 minutes (range, 70-214) minutes. Of the 16 outpatient procedures, patients were discharged after 14 (88%) on the same day, and after 2 (12%) were admitted for observation, with 1 being due to transportation issues and the other due to fever during the observation period.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A comprehensive procedural protocol to evaluate allograft function in infant lung and heart-lung transplant recipients was performed safely as an outpatient.
authors.affiliation: Section of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Nationwide Children's Hospital, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio. Electronic address: hayes.705@osu.edu.
authors.forename: Don
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hayes
authors.affiliation: Division of Pediatric Cardiac Anesthesia, Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Nationwide Children's Hospital, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.
authors.forename: Aymen
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Naguib
authors.affiliation: Section of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Nationwide Children's Hospital, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kirkby
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Nationwide Children's Hospital, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Galantowicz
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Nationwide Children's Hospital, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.
authors.forename: Patrick I
authors.initials: PI
authors.lastname: McConnell
authors.affiliation: Section of Surgical Pathology, Department of Pathology, Nationwide Children's Hospital, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.
authors.forename: Peter B
authors.initials: PB
authors.lastname: Baker
authors.affiliation: Section of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Nationwide Children's Hospital, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.
authors.forename: Benjamin T
authors.initials: BT
authors.lastname: Kopp
authors.affiliation: Section of Critical Care Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Nationwide Children's Hospital, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.
authors.forename: Eric A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Lloyd
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Todd L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Astor
mesh_terms: D064591:Allografts; D001999:Bronchoscopy; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000601:surgery*; D016041:Heart-Lung Transplantation; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008168:Lung / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D011184:Postoperative Period; D012129:Respiratory Function Tests; D012143:Respiratory Physiological Phenomena; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
keywords: CT scan; allograft; bronchoscopy; evaluation; fiberoptic; flexible; heart-lung; infant; lung; outpatient; pulmonary function; sedation; surveillance; transplantation