Reduced incidence of cardiac rejection in multi-organ transplants: A propensity matched study.

2023

e15019

05/2023

1399-0012

BACKGROUND: Rejection remains a primary cause of graft loss after heart transplant (HT). Recognizing the immunomodulation of multi-organ transplant can enhance our understanding of the mechanisms of cardiac rejection.

METHODS: This retrospective cohort study identified patients from the UNOS database with isolated heart (H, N = 37 433), heart-kidney (HKi, N = 1516), heart-liver (HLi, N = 286), and heart-lung (HLu, N = 408) transplants from 2004 to 2019. Propensity score matching reduced baseline differences between groups. Outcomes included risk of rejection prior to transplant hospital discharge and within 1 year, and mortality within 1 year of transplant.

RESULTS: In the propensity score matched data, the relative risk of being treated for rejection prior to transplant hospital discharge was 61% lower for HKi (RR .39, 95% CI .29, .53) and 87% lower for HLi (RR .13, 95% CI .05, .37) compared to H. Similarly, the probability of being treated for rejection in the first year after transplant remained lower in HKi (RR .45, 95% CI .35, .57) and HLi (RR .13, 95% CI .06, .28) compared to H. The 1-year survival analysis revealed an equivalent risk of death in HKi (HR .84, 95% CI .68, 1.03) and HLi (HR 1.41, 95% CI .83, 2.41) compared to H, while HLu had a higher risk of death in the first year after transplant (HR 1.65, 95% CI 1.17, 2.33).

CONCLUSIONS: Recipients of HKi and HLi experience a reduced risk of rejection when compared to H, but an equivalent risk of 1 yr mortality. These findings have important implications for the future of HT medicine.

10.1111/ctr.15019

Clin Transplant

37212365

Association of Donors With US Public Health Service Risk Criteria and Outcomes After Adult vs Pediatric Cardiac Transplant.

2022

1121-1127

11/2022

2380-6591

Importance: The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) evaluates donor risk for acute transmission of HIV, hepatitis B, or hepatitis C based on US Public Health Services (PHS)-specific criteria. However, recent data regarding use and outcomes of those donors with PHS risk criteria among pediatric and adult heart transplant recipients are lacking.

Objective: To compare use and outcomes of graft from donors with PHS risk criteria vs those with a standard-risk donor (SRD) in children vs adults in a contemporary cohort.

Design, Setting, and Participants: This cohort was a nationwide analysis of heart transplants in the US that used data from the UNOS database. Participants were children (<18 years old) and adults (≥18 years old) who received a heart transplant from January 1, 2010, to December 31, 2021.

Exposures: UNOS-defined donor risk status.

Main Outcomes and Measures: Trend analysis compared changes in PHS risk criteria use among children and adults. Patient survival was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier curves with log rank and Cox proportional hazards to compare PHS risk-criteria outcomes vs SRD-criteria outcomes in children and adult heart transplant recipients. Additional analysis was performed among adults who received a PHS-risk criteria graft that was previously declined for pediatric recipients.

Results: Of 5115 pediatric transplant recipients (donor without PHS risk median [IQR] age, 5 [0-13] years and donor with PHS risk median [IQR] age, 8 [0-14] years) and 30 289 adult heart transplant recipients (donor without PHS risk median [IQR] age, 56 [46-63] years and donor with PHS risk median [IQR] age, 57 [47-63] years), PHS risk criteria comprised 8% in children vs 25% in adults. PHS criteria are being increasingly used over the past decade with the proportion of recipients transplanted with PHS risk-criteria donors being approximately 3 times greater among adult recipients than children recipients. Pediatric recipients of a PHS risk-criteria donor had greater pretransplant ventilatory support, whereas adult recipients of a PHS risk-criteria donor had greater pretransplant extracorporeal membrane oxygenation use. Patient survival was similar between pediatric recipients of PHS risk-criteria grafts vs SRD-criteria grafts and slightly higher among adult recipients of PHS risk-criteria grafts vs SRD-criteria grafts. The 1778 adult recipients who received a PHS criteria-risk donor that was previously declined for pediatric recipients had similar patient survival recipients compared with SRD-criteria donors (HR, 0.92; 95% CI, 0.81-1.03; P = .18).

Conclusions and Relevance: In the current era, a 3-fold greater proportion of adult recipients receive a PHS risk-criteria graft compared with children despite similar posttransplant patient survival. The ongoing organ donor shortage underscores the need for consideration of PHS risk criteria where these donors remain underused.

10.1001/jamacardio.2022.3070

JAMA Cardiol

36129691

Successful treatment of intracardiac thrombosis in the presence of fulminant myocarditis requiring ECMO associated with COVID-19.

2022

2022 Mar 10

1557-3117

10.1016/j.healun.2022.03.003

J Heart Lung Transplant

35370032

MILESTONE: More Than 1,200 Children Bridged to Heart Transplantation with Mechanical Circulatory Support.

2022

577-583

2022 Apr 01

1538-943X

<p>Pediatric mechanical circulatory support (MCS) has been successfully used to bridge numerous children to transplantation who otherwise would have been unlikely to survive on the waitlist and, in many cases, make them better transplant candidates. The purpose of this study was to analyze what the pediatric heart failure community has achieved over the last 15 years in reaching 1,200 cases of bridging children to heart transplantation. The United Network for Organ Sharing database was used to identify MCS patients ages 0-18 at the time of listing for heart transplantation between 2005 and 2019, divided into three eras: first (2005-2009), second (2010-2014), and third (2015-2019). From 2005 to 2019, 1,289 pediatric cases were identified. More patients were successfully bridged to transplantation with MCS in the third-era (28%) [vs. first-era (16%), second-era (24%), p ≤ 0.004]. The proportion of discharges on ventricular assist device has increased as well from 3% to 22% (p &lt; 0.001). Post-transplant survival was significantly better in the third era (1-year survival: 96%; 3-year survival: 89%) compared to the two previous eras (p = 0.006). On MCS, renal dysfunction, ventilator dependence, inotrope use, and functional status improved from the time of listing to transplantation (p &lt; 0.01). Hepatic dysfunction (p &lt; 0.001), renal dysfunction (p = 0.004), congenital heart disease (p = 0.023), and infant age (p = 0.002) were risk factors for post-transplant mortality. Over the last 15 years, pediatric MCS has become an accepted and increasingly used strategy for bridging children to transplantation. MCS therapy is associated with improved end-organ function at the time of transplantation, perhaps contributing to the increasing post-transplantation survival of patients bridged with MCS.</p>

10.1097/MAT.0000000000001635

ASAIO J

35349524

Fifth Annual Pediatric Interagency Registry for Mechanical Circulatory Support (Pedimacs) Report.

2021

2021 Oct 11

1552-6259

<p><strong>BACKGROUND: </strong>The Pediatric Interagency Registry for Mechanical Circulatory Support (Pedimacs) provides detailed information on pediatric patients supported with ventricular assist devices (VADs).</p>

<p><strong>METHODS: </strong>From September 19, 2012 to December 31, 2020 there were 1,229 devices in 1,011 patients reported to the registry from 47 North American Hospitals in patients under 19 years of age.</p>

<p><strong>RESULTS: </strong>Cardiomyopathy was the most common underlying etiology (58%), followed by congenital heart disease (CHD) (25%) and myocarditis (10%). The most common devices implanted were implantable continuous (IC) (n=419, 41%), followed by paracorporeal pulsatile (PP) (n=269, 27%), paracorporeal continuous (PC) (n=263, 26%), and percutaneous (n=53, 5%). Overall, at six months after VAD implantation, 83% had a positive outcome (transplant, explant, or alive on device). The freedom from stroke was highest in IC VADs (93% at 3-months), compared to PP VADs (84% at 3-months) and with PC VADs (75% at 3-months. There were differences in survival by device type with patients on IC VADs having the best overall survival and those on PC having the lowest overall survival, though the patient populations being supported by each VAD type differed significantly from each other.</p>

<p><strong>CONCLUSIONS: </strong>This Fifth Pedimacs Report demonstrates the continued robust growth of VADs in the pediatric community, now with over 1000 patients reported to the registry. The multiple available device types (PC, PP, IC) serve different populations with different pre-VAD risk profiles, which may account for differences in survival and AE between device types.</p>

10.1016/j.athoracsur.2021.10.001

Ann Thorac Surg

34648810

The influence of mechanical Circulatory support on post-transplant outcomes in pediatric patients: A multicenter study from the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT) Registry.

2021

2021 Jun 11

1557-3117

<p><strong>BACKGROUND: </strong>Mechanical circulatory support (MCS) is increasingly being used as a bridge to transplant in pediatric patients. We compare outcomes in pediatric patients bridged to transplant with MCS from an international cohort.</p>

<p><strong>METHODS: </strong>This retrospective cohort study of heart-transplant patients reported to the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT) registry from 2005-2017 includes 5,095 patients &lt;18 years. Pretransplant MCS exposure and anatomic diagnosis were derived. Outcomes included mortality, renal failure, and stroke.</p>

<p><strong>RESULTS: </strong>26% of patients received MCS prior to transplant: 240 (4.7%) on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), 1,030 (20.2%) on ventricular assist device (VAD), and 54 (1%) both. 29% of patients were &lt;1 year, and 43.8% had congenital heart disease (CHD). After adjusting for clinical characteristics, compared to no-MCS and VAD, ECMO had higher mortality during their transplant hospitalization [OR 3.97 &amp; 2.55; 95% CI 2.43-6.49 &amp; 1.42-4.60] while VAD mortality was similar [OR 1.55; CI 0.99-2.45]. Outcomes of ECMO+VAD were similar to ECMO alone, including increased mortality during transplant hospitalization compared to no-MCS [OR 4.74; CI 1.81-12.36]. Patients with CHD on ECMO had increased 1 year, and 10 year mortality [HR 2.36; CI 1.65-3.39], [HR 1.82; CI 1.33-2.49]; there was no difference in survival in dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) patients based on pretransplant MCS status.</p>

<p><strong>CONCLUSION: </strong>Survival in CHD and DCM is similar in patients with no MCS or VAD prior to transplant, while pretransplant ECMO use is strongly associated with mortality after transplant particularly in children with CHD. In children with DCM, long term survival was equivalent regardless of MCS status.</p>

10.1016/j.healun.2021.06.003

J Heart Lung Transplant

34253457