Newer heart transplant method could allow more patients a chance at lifesaving surgery

Most transplanted hearts are from donors who are brain dead, but new research shows a different approach can be just as successful and boost the number of available organs. It's called donation after circulatory death, long used to recover kidneys and other organs — but not more fragile hearts. Then a few years ago surgeons started “reanimating” hearts in a machine that shows they can pump properly after that type of donation. Duke Health researchers found six-month survival was similar regardless of the donation method. The findings were published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine.