Adult Heart Failure and Transplantation Program

We save lives by implanting new organs and ventricular assist devices.

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If you are at risk of heart failure, our surgical team is ready to provide the best possible care. That might mean stabilizing your heart with a ventricular assist device (VAD) or moving ahead with a heart transplant as rapidly as possible.

Our multidisciplinary team at the Miami Transplant Institute focuses on saving the lives of adults, and restoring their hearts to the best possible functioning. Since 1986, our team has performed hundreds of heart transplants with outcomes that exceed national averages. We can also do multi-organ transplants, such as heart and liver, and heart-lung-liver procedures, as well as coronary artery bypass surgery at the same time as a transplant.

Heart transplants are not the only therapy for advanced heart failure, which claims thousands of lives every year. Patients who have been hospitalized several times for heart failure should consider a VAD. In the past, VADs have been used on a temporary basis until a donor heart becomes available. However, our team now offers this mechanical support option as a long-term alternative to transplantation for patients who may not qualify for a heart transplant or face a long waiting time for a donor organ.

We have been on the forefront of advancing the clinical use of VADs in patients with advanced heart failure, and our outcomes are comparable with transplant results. Many patients with VADs also have a better quality of life and fewer complications compared with traditional medical therapy.

If you have a failing heart or lungs, our team can provide life-saving support until the underlying problem is corrected or until a transplant can be performed. We are experts in Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO)—a short-term therapy that provides mechanical support for your heart and other essential organs.

Our multidisciplinary team can also help you address any underlying chronic conditions that can damage these vital organs and affect your overall quality of life.

Our specialties include:

Heart transplants

To treat end-stage heart failure

Heart and lung transplants

For end-stage diseases

Ventricular assist devices

For stabilizing heart conditions

Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO)

For short-term mechanical support of the heart

Learn more at the Miami Transplant Institute

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Frequently Asked Questions

How do I know if I need a heart transplant?

A multidisciplinary team of cardiologists, cardiac surgeons, and transplant specialists can evaluate your heart condition and outline your treatment options so you make a well-informed decision.

What conditions lead to heart failure?

There are many conditions that may require a life-saving organ transplant or mechanical support, including congenital heart disease, coronary artery disease, heart valve disease or ischemic cardiomyopathy.

What happens if I have been approved for transplantation?

You will be placed on the recipient wait list of the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS). Heart recipients are matched to potential donors according to blood type, tissue type, and waiting time on the list.