Abstract des Autors

Due to extended life expectancy and improvement of life quality, the number of patients suffering from heart failure is increasing. Heart failure represents 1.5% of the total number of deaths in America, and the Framingham study shows that after diagnosis the average survival for men and women is 1.7 and 3.2 years, respectively. Over the last few years the number of available grafts has decreased whereas the potential indications for heart transplantation have increased because of favorable short- and long-term results obtained with this technique. This increasing mismatch between supply and demand has led to the development of various techniques allowing to cancel or defer the time of transplantation. lt is not a matter of alternative, since heart transplantation remains the final therapeutic solution when all other alternative treatments have been thought of or tried. Research was directed towards other aspects: the use of new molecules, cardiomyoplasty, partial ventriculectomy or mechanical circulatory assistance, while waiting for a totally implantable electrical artificial heart or xenotransplantations. Verf.-Referat