Medico Cirujano Cardiovascular

Transplant procedure


You will be asked to remove any jewelry or other objects that may interfere with the procedure.
You will be asked to remove your clothing and will be given a gown to wear.An intravenous (IV) line will be started in your hand or arm prior to the procedure for injection of medication and to administer IV fluids, if needed. Additional catheters will be inserted in yourneck and wrist to monitor the status of your heart and blood pressure, as well as for obtaining blood samples. Alternate sites for the additional catheters include the subclavian (under the collarbone)area and the groin.
A catheter will be inserted into your bladder to drain urine.
Heart transplant surgery will be performed while you are asleep under general anesthesia. A tube will be insertedthrough your mouth into your lungs. The tube will be attached to a ventilator that will breathe for you during the procedure.
The anesthesiologist will continuously monitor your heart rate, bloodpressure, and blood oxygen level during the surgery.
The skin over the surgical site will be cleansed with an antiseptic solution.
The physician will make an incision (cut) down the center of the chestfrom just below the Adam's apple to just above the navel.
The sternum (breastbone) will be divided in half with a special operating instrument. The physician will separate the two halves of thebreastbone and spread them apart to expose the heart.
Tubes will be inserted into the chest so that the blood can be pumped through your body by a cardiopulmonary bypass machine (heart-lung machine).Once the blood has been completely diverted into the cardiopulmonary bypass machine for pumping, the diseased heart will be removed.
The donor heart will be sewn into place. Once the new heart is inplace, blood vessels will be connected.
When the transplant procedure has been completed, the blood circulating through the cardiopulmonary bypass machine will be allowed back into the heart and the...