POSTOPERATIVE CARE OF THE HEART TRANSPLANTED PATIENT
Patient’s new heart is supported with intravenous medications for about 1-2 days until it recovers from the “shock” of the transplant but patient will immediately feel the difference a healthy heart makes. Because the immune system get activated immediately when the heart is transplanted, patient is given medications to prevent rejection before transplant and immediately afterwards. One of the most important blood specimens taken daily measures the amount of cyclosporine in patient’s blood. The dosage of cyclosporine is adjusted based on this result in order to avoid the organ rejection.