We reviewed our institutional experience with 24 children with
pulmonary hypertension, who were referred for lung or heart and
lung transplantation. Diagnosis, age, and previously published predictive survival scores calculated at the time of referral were analyzed as predictors of pretransplant death. Among the 24 children, 7 did not meet criteria for listing and 17 were listed for
transplantation. Of those listed, eight died waiting, two await
transplantation, and seven were transplanted and are alive and well 7-20 months after
transplantation. Poor functional status (New York Heart Association class 3 or 4) at the time of referral was significantly associated with death before transplant (P=0.05) in univariate analysis. Analysis of the predictive scores was possible in 21 of 24 patients; lower predictive scores were significantly associated with death before
transplantation and shorter duration of survival without
transplantation in univariate analysis. Multivariate analysis (Cox regression) confirmed that lower scores were significantly associated with poor survival. We conclude that children with
pulmonary hypertension are often referred for
transplantation too late in the course of their disease. Early complete hemodynamic evaluation before the onset of severe symptoms, followed by serial evaluations of
disease progression and consultation with a transplant center, should result in earlier, more appropriate time of listing and improved survival. A systematic study of pretransplant mortality among all children listed for
lung transplantation would provide a basis for clinical decision making and policies affecting organ allocation.