Pharmacotherapy in the heart transplant recipient: A primer for nurse clinicians and pharmacists

Heart transplantation (HT) is the definitive treatment for eligible patients with end‐stage heart disease. A major complication of HT is allograft rejection which can lead to graft dysfunction and death. The guiding principle of chronic immunosuppression therapy is to prevent rejection of the transp...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Clinical transplantation 2024-02, Vol.38 (2), p.e15252-n/a
Main Authors: Fraser, Meg, Page, Robert L., Chow, Sheryl, Alexy, Tamas, Peters, Laura
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Graft Rejection - drug therapy
Graft Rejection - etiology
Graft Rejection - prevention & control
heart transplant
Heart Transplantation - adverse effects
Humans
immunosuppression
Immunosuppression Therapy
Immunosuppressive Agents
nurse
Nurse Clinicians
pharmacist
Pharmacists
prophylaxis
rejection
Citations: Items that this one cites
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Heart transplantation (HT) is the definitive treatment for eligible patients with end‐stage heart disease. A major complication of HT is allograft rejection which can lead to graft dysfunction and death. The guiding principle of chronic immunosuppression therapy is to prevent rejection of the transplanted organ while avoiding oversuppression of the immune system, which can cause opportunistic infections and malignancy. The purpose of this review is to describe immunosuppressive management of the HT recipient—including agent‐specific pharmacology and pharmacokinetics, outcomes data, adverse effects, clinical considerations, and recent guideline updates. We will also provide recommendations for medical prophylaxis of immunosuppressed patients based on the most recent clinical guidelines. Additionally, we highlight the importance of medical therapy adherence and the effect of social determinants of health on the long‐term management of HT. HT recipients are a complex and high‐risk population. The objective of this review is to describe basic pharmacotherapy in HT and implications for nurses and pharmacists.
ISSN:0902-0063
1399-0012
DOI:10.1111/ctr.15252