Hearts on the Line: Choosing Wisely, Saving Lives ❤️🫀
Mar 30, 2025•5 min
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Episode description
🫀 Heart transplantation is a life-saving treatment for end-stage heart failure, but donor hearts are scarce.
🔍 Donor selection is complex, involving factors like age, heart size, LV function, and comorbidities.
🌍 The U.S. is more conservative than Europe, with higher donor heart nonuse rates.
⚙️ New tools like Predicted Heart Mass (PHM), Organ Care Systems, and AI models improve matching and outcomes.
💉 Donation after Circulatory Death (DCD) is expanding the donor pool.
⚖️ Ethical concerns and upcoming policy shifts aim for more equitable, data-driven heart allocation.
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