Current status of heart transplantation in Taiwan.
OBJECTIVE
We reviewed the national results of heart transplantation in Taiwan.


METHODS
From July 1987 to December 2012, 1354 patients underwent heart transplantation in 18 qualified heart centers in Taiwan. The transplantation volume and survival rate were reviewed.


RESULTS
The median age of recipients was 49 years at surgery, with 37% in the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT)-1A, 30% in ISHLT-1B, and 32% in ISHLT-2. The allograft 1-, 3-, 5-, and 10-year survival rates were 78%, 68%, 61%, and 47%, respectively. Mostly difficult recipients were bridged by extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) instead of ventricular assist device (VAD).


CONCLUSIONS
The results of heart transplantation in Taiwan are comparable with ISHLT world results. In Taiwan, we use more ECMO than VAD for mechanical circulatory support to bridge critical recipients to heart transplantation.
Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address: wangp@ntu.edu.tw.
S-S
SS
Wang
Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
C-H
CH
Wang
Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
N-K
NK
Chou
Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
N-H
NH
Chi
Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
S-C
SC
Huang
Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
H-Y
HY
Yu
Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
I-H
IH
Wu
Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
Y-S
YS
Chen
Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
W-J
WJ
Ko
Department of Nursing, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
C-I
CI
Tsao
Department of Pathology, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
C-T
CT
Shun
Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Far Eastern Memorial Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
S-H
SH
Chu
D005260:Female; D016027:Heart Transplantation; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015996:Survival Rate; D013624:Taiwan