Welcome to Cardiology Today – Recorded December 02, 2025. This episode summarizes 5 key cardiology studies on topics like risk score and heart transplantation. Key takeaway: Heart Transplant Survival Score Developed.
Article Links:
Article 1: Reducing driveline infection risk in durable mechanical circulatory support devices with ultra-flexible wires for energy transfer. (The Journal of heart and lung transplantation : the official publication of the International Society for Heart Transplantation)
Article 2: Clinical outcomes of cardiogenic shock patients supported with VA-ECMO: Insights from the Cardiogenic Shock Working Group. (The Journal of heart and lung transplantation : the official publication of the International Society for Heart Transplantation)
Article 3: Development of a risk score predicting survival after adult heart transplantation in the United States. (The Journal of heart and lung transplantation : the official publication of the International Society for Heart Transplantation)
Article 4: Out of sequence heart transplants: Why, how many, and to whom. (The Journal of heart and lung transplantation : the official publication of the International Society for Heart Transplantation)
Article 5: Lung transplant in patients with suspicious lung lesions: A single-center retrospective data analysis. (The Journal of heart and lung transplantation : the official publication of the International Society for Heart Transplantation)
Full episode page: https://podcast.explainheart.com/podcast/heart-transplant-survival-score-developed-12-02-25/
Featured Articles
Article 1: Reducing driveline infection risk in durable mechanical circulatory support devices with ultra-flexible wires for energy transfer.
Journal: The Journal of heart and lung transplantation : the official publication of the International Society for Heart Transplantation
PubMed Link: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40714161
Summary: Durable mechanical circulatory support devices are associated with driveline infections, a major burden for heart failure patients. A key contributor to these infections is the low mechanical compliance of current drivelines, which negatively impacts wound healing. The research explores new drivelines equipped with ultra-flexible wires, which are designed to mitigate mechanical stress on the skin. This approach addresses the root cause of wound healing issues, thus offering a strategy to reduce the risk of driveline infections.
Article 2: Clinical outcomes of cardiogenic shock patients supported with VA-ECMO: Insights from the Cardiogenic Shock Working Group.
Journal: The Journal of heart and lung transplantation : the official publication of the International Society for Heart Transplantation
PubMed Link: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40714159
Summary: A. -E. C. M. O.: Insights from the Cardiogenic Shock Working Group. Veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (V. A. -E. C. M. O.) is used worldwide for cardiogenic shock despite conflicting outcomes from randomized trials that focused on myocardial infarction-related cardiogenic shock. This study, using a multicenter registry, provided a detailed characterization of clinical outcomes for patients with cardiogenic shock supported by V. A. -E. C. M. O. The analysis differentiated outcomes across various cardiogenic shock etiologies, moving beyond a sole focus on myocardial infarction-related cases. This work established a clearer understanding of V. A. -E. C. M. O.’s clinical utility in a broader spectrum of cardiogenic shock patients.
Article 3: Development of a risk score predicting survival after adult heart transplantation in the United States.
Journal: The Journal of heart and lung transplantation : the official publication of the International Society for Heart Transplantation
PubMed Link: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40691955
Summary: The United States’ system for allocating donor hearts currently prioritizes candidates at highest risk of waiting list death. To optimize organ allocation under the upcoming continuous distribution system, a novel U. S. transplant risk score (U. S. -T. R. S.) was developed and validated. This observational study, utilizing the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients, established the U. S. -T. R. S. to predict survival after adult heart transplantation. The score provides a tool to help avoid futile transplants by better matching donor hearts to recipients who will most benefit.
Article 4: Out of sequence heart transplants: Why, how many, and to whom.
Journal: The Journal of heart and lung transplantation : the official publication of the International Society for Heart Transplantation
PubMed Link: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40685032
Summary: Heart transplantation allocation generally follows an urgency-ranked match list established by the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network. This study provided a comprehensive description of out of sequence heart transplants (O. O. S. H. T.), which occur outside this standard sequence. The research characterized the prevalence of O. O. S. H. T. along with specific donor and recipient profiles associated with these transplants. It further detailed how centers and recipients involved in O. O. S. H. T. differed from those receiving standard sequence donors, offering important insights into allocation practices.
Article 5: Lung transplant in patients with suspicious lung lesions: A single-center retrospective data analysis.
Journal: The Journal of heart and lung transplantation : the official publication of the International Society for Heart Transplantation
PubMed Link: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40645312
Summary: Patients presenting with suspicious pulmonary lesions are often excluded from lung transplantation. This single-center retrospective analysis addressed the significant data gap regarding the prevalence and characteristics of suspicious lung lesions in transplant candidates, including the proportion of malignancy among them. The study compared lesion characteristics and assessed definitive histology reports for all patients with suspicious lung nodules who ultimately underwent lung transplantation between 2012 and 2022. This research clarified the nature of these lesions and their implications for successful lung transplantation in a population traditionally considered high-risk.
Transcript
Today’s date is December 02, 2025. Welcome to Cardiology Today. Here are the latest research findings.
Article number one. Reducing driveline infection risk in durable mechanical circulatory support devices with ultra-flexible wires for energy transfer. Durable mechanical circulatory support devices are associated with driveline infections, a major burden for heart failure patients. A key contributor to these infections is the low mechanical compliance of current drivelines, which negatively impacts wound healing. The research explores new drivelines equipped with ultra-flexible wires, which are designed to mitigate mechanical stress on the skin. This approach addresses the root cause of wound healing issues, thus offering a strategy to reduce the risk of driveline infections.
Article number two. Clinical outcomes of cardiogenic shock patients supported with V. A. -E. C. M. O.: Insights from the Cardiogenic Shock Working Group. Veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (V. A. -E. C. M. O.) is used worldwide for cardiogenic shock despite conflicting outcomes from randomized trials that focused on myocardial infarction-related cardiogenic shock. This study, using a multicenter registry, provided a detailed characterization of clinical outcomes for patients with cardiogenic shock supported by V. A. -E. C. M. O. The analysis differentiated outcomes across various cardiogenic shock etiologies, moving beyond a sole focus on myocardial infarction-related cases. This work established a clearer understanding of V. A. -E. C. M. O.’s clinical utility in a broader spectrum of cardiogenic shock patients.
Article number three. Development of a risk score predicting survival after adult heart transplantation in the United States. The United States’ system for allocating donor hearts currently prioritizes candidates at highest risk of waiting list death. To optimize organ allocation under the upcoming continuous distribution system, a novel U. S. transplant risk score (U. S. -T. R. S.) was developed and validated. This observational study, utilizing the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients, established the U. S. -T. R. S. to predict survival after adult heart transplantation. The score provides a tool to help avoid futile transplants by better matching donor hearts to recipients who will most benefit.
Article number four. Out of sequence heart transplants: Why, how many, and to whom. Heart transplantation allocation generally follows an urgency-ranked match list established by the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network. This study provided a comprehensive description of out of sequence heart transplants (O. O. S. H. T.), which occur outside this standard sequence. The research characterized the prevalence of O. O. S. H. T. along with specific donor and recipient profiles associated with these transplants. It further detailed how centers and recipients involved in O. O. S. H. T. differed from those receiving standard sequence donors, offering important insights into allocation practices.
Article number five. Lung transplant in patients with suspicious lung lesions: A single-center retrospective data analysis. Patients presenting with suspicious pulmonary lesions are often excluded from lung transplantation. This single-center retrospective analysis addressed the significant data gap regarding the prevalence and characteristics of suspicious lung lesions in transplant candidates, including the proportion of malignancy among them. The study compared lesion characteristics and assessed definitive histology reports for all patients with suspicious lung nodules who ultimately underwent lung transplantation between 2012 and 2022. This research clarified the nature of these lesions and their implications for successful lung transplantation in a population traditionally considered high-risk.
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Keywords
risk score, heart transplantation, heart failure, organ allocation, pulmonary lesions, cardiogenic shock, clinical outcomes, ultra-flexible wires, out of sequence transplants, Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients, recipient characteristics, suspicious lung nodules, driveline infection, registry analysis, veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, wound healing, lung transplantation, survival prediction, histology, myocardial infarction, mechanical circulatory support, malignancy.
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