Medical Animation: Orthotopic Heart Transplantation | Cincinnati Children’s

Cincinnati Children’s Heart Institute- 513-636-4432 Heart Transplantation is a surgical transplant procedure that is performed when there is end-stage heart failure. Most often in pediatrics, this occurs when there is failed medical or surgical palliation of congenital or acquired heart disease. In certain cases, heart transplantation may be the best or even the only option. An orthotopic heart transplant consists of explanting or removing the patient’s heart and implanting a new heart from a deceased donor. In transplant medicine, “orthotopic” refers to placing a donor organ in its normal or usual position, and in this case, the failing heart is removed and the donor heart is placed in the exact same location. This video illustrates an orthotopic, bicaval heart transplant in a patient with typical anatomy. The patient (also known as “transplant recipient”) is placed on cardiopulmonary bypass where deoxygenated venous blood is removed and