The two major categories for potential recipients are

• patients with complex forms of congenital heart defects. These are defects existing since birth.
• patients with dilated cardiomyopathy. The heart cavity is enlarged and stretched, so the heart is weak and doesn't pump normally.

Hypoplastic left heart syndrome is the most common complex congenital heart defect for which a heart transplant is a potentially useful treatment. In this condition the heart's lower left pumping chamber (the left ventricle) and the large artery that carries blood to the body (the ascending aorta) are too small to support normal blood flow.

See the Related Items box above for links to the Cardiology Patient Page in Circulation, Journal of the American Heart Association:

• Heart Transplant: What to Expect

Related AHA publications:

• Heart and Stroke Facts
• About Heart Transplants
• AHA Science Advisory: Guidelines for Parent Support Groups, #71-0131
• If Your Child Has a Congenital Heart Defect