Give the Gift of Life

Q: My brother-in-law just turned 50 and needs a new heart. We sometimes hear that wealthy people get donor organs quicker than others. Is this true? How long is the usual wait for a new heart?

A: As you are well aware, there is an extreme shortage of organs, including hearts, suitable for transplantation. In 1982, the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) was formed to provide equitable distribution of transplant organs. Located in Richmond, Virginia, UNOS is a nonprofit organization that administers the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) to facilitate organ matching and placement according to equitable policies based on objective medical criteria such as blood and tissue type, medical urgency of the patient, time spent on the waiting list, distance between the donor and recipient, and so on. There are about 2,500 heart transplants yearly in the U.S., with many thousands more on the waiting list. The waiting time varies from several days to several months or longer.

Heartbeat

Cardiac Test Basics

Please explain the difference between an electrocardiogram and an echocardiogram. What exactly do these tests tell doctors about the heart?

July 29, 2010 | Read more »

Low-Dose Aspirin for Heart Health

What is the latest information about taking daily baby aspirin to help the heart?

July 29, 2010 | Read more »

Heart Defect Often Causes No Symptoms

I had a stroke in 2003, and a diagnostic test showed a “hole” in my heart with no right-to-left shunt. The shunt didn’t show up on a different kind of test in 2009, either. I came through the stroke fine because I went to the hospital right away and have been on warfarin ever since. My question is: If there’s no shunt, is the hole present?

July 29, 2010 | Read more »

Surgery Corrects Heart Rhythm

Q: How does the Maze treatment for atrial fibrillation work, and what does it involve? A: The Maze procedure is open heart surgery to eliminate rapid heartbeats. It involves making a series of incisions in the top portion of the heart, the atria. In experienced hands, the procedure is successful in more than 90 percent [...]

June 2, 2010 | Read more »