Cardiac surgeons who performed a record number of heart transplants at YNHH last year were (l-r): Ayyaz Ali, MB ChB; Arnar Geirsson, MD; Pramod Bonde, MD.

Hospital performs record number of heart transplants in 2018

In celebration of Heart Month, Yale New Haven Hospital recently announced that it set a new Connecticut record for the number of heart transplants performed in one year.

Cardiac surgeons with Yale New Haven Transplantation Center performed 30 adult heart transplants in 2018, surpassing the previous state record of 21. Heart transplants at YNHH increased 114 percent from 2017 to 2018. In addition, the hospital achieved a 100 percent survival rate for heart transplant recipients at 30 days post-surgery in 2018.

Yale New Haven Transplantation Center represents a collaboration of specialized teams for heart, kidney and liver transplants. In addition to cardiac surgeons, cardiologists, nephrologists, nurses and transplant coordinators support heart transplants. The YNHH heart transplant program works closely with Yale Medicine’s Comprehensive Heart Failure Program, part of the hospital’s Heart and Vascular Center.

The surgeons performing the 2018 heart transplants were Ayyaz Ali, MB ChB, YNHH surgical director of the Advanced Heart Failure, Heart Transplantation and Mechanical Circulatory Support Program; Pramod Bonde, MD; and Arnar Geirsson, MD, YNHH chief of Cardiac Surgery.

“This achievement is the result of a tremendous amount of dedication and hard work by heart failure surgeons, cardiologists and intensivists,” said Dr. Geirsson. “Equally as important were the dedicated staff of advanced practice providers, nurses in the intensive care units, support staff and transplant coordinators, with full support from the administration of the Heart and Vascular Center at YNHH.”