Preoperative assessment and management of pediatric heart transplantation.

The period of preoperative management of the pediatric cardiac transplant patient can be divided into three phases: determination of transplant feasibility, listing, and medical management. Chronic infection, irreversible elevation of pulmonary vascular resistance, and intractable disease in other organ systems may all be contraindications for transplantation. The United Network for Organ Sharing has recently changed its listing guidelines. Adolescent donors are now preferentially, to some extent, allocated to adolescent recipients. Management of pediatric patients awaiting cardiac transplantation encompasses optimization of cardiac output through the use of vasodilators and oral and intravenous inotropic agents. For those patients listed for transplantation who have single ventricle lesions, such as hypoplastic left heart syndrome, management of heart failure also includes balancing systemic and pulmonary blood flows. Mechanical support of the circulation with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation or ventricular assist devices can be used as a bridge to transplant in pediatric patients.