Risks of Having a Heart Transplant

A heart transplant is an operation in which a failing, diseased heart is replaced with a healthier, donor heart. Heart transplant is a treatment that’s usually reserved for people who have tried medications or other surgeries, but their conditions haven’t sufficiently improved.
While a heart transplant is a major operation, your chance of survival is good, with appropriate follow-up care.
When faced with a decision about having a heart transplant, know what to expect of the heart transplant process, the surgery itself, potential risks and follow-up care.

Although receiving a donor heart can save your life, having a heart transplant has many risks. Choose the best heart hospital in Kolkata for more details. Here are the risks include:

• Rejection of the donor heart One of the most significant risks after a heart transplant is your body rejecting the donor heart.Your immune system will see your donor heart as a foreign object that’s not supposed to be in your body. Your immune system will try to attack your donor heart. Although all people who receive a heart transplant receive immuno-suppressants — medications that reduce the activity of the immune system — about 10 percent of heart transplant recipients still have some signs of rejection that need treatment during the first year after transplantation. This is often effectively treated with medication.Usually the rejection is without any symptoms and requires only an adjustment of medications. If you miss doses of medications, however, the rejection can be severe and very serious. It’s important that you follow the instructions as explained by your doctors.To determine whether your body is rejecting the new heart, you’ll have frequent heart biopsies to test your heart tissue during the first year after your transplant. After the first year, the number of biopsies is significantly reduced.
• Problems with your coronary arteries After your transplant, it’s possible the walls of the arteries in your heart (coronary arteries) could thicken and harden, leading to cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV). This can make blood circulation through your heart difficult and can cause a heart attack, heart failure, abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias) or sudden cardiac death.Your doctor may recommend annual tests after your transplant to monitor your coronary arteries for CAV.
• Medication side effects The immuno-suppressants you’ll need to take for the rest of your life may cause kidney damage and other problems. Other complications of these medications can include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes and a condition in which your bones become thin and weak (osteoporosis).
• Cancer Immuno-suppressants can also increase your cancer risk. Taking these medications can put you at a greater risk of skin cancer, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and other solid tumors. Regular checkups are necessary to detect the development of cancer.
• Infection – Immuno-suppressants decrease your ability to fight infection. Some heart transplant recipients may develop an infection that requires them to be admitted to the hospital during the first year after their transplant. The risk of infection decreases over time as the amount of immuno-suppressant medication is decreased.