Heart transplant tests

You'll need lots of tests to see if you’re able to have a heart transplant

Key points

The tests determine whether you are well enough to cope with major surgery
Blood tests will check your blood group and tissue type so you can be matched with a donor
High levels of antibodies in your blood can make it harder to find a suitable heart donor
Heart, lung and other specialist tests are also needed to check your fitness for major surgery

Tests to see if you are suitable for a heart transplant

If your heart doctor thinks that a heart transplant is a possible treatment option, you will have tests done. This assessment process is to see whether your condition is severe enough to make the risk of a transplant worthwhile. It also checks for problems in other organs that might increase the risk of a transplant.

A lot of tests are needed and each transplant centre has their own set of requirements. The team looking after you will provide details of the exact tests that you need.

The information below gives details of some of the tests you are likely to have.

Blood tests

You will need lots of blood tests to check your general health, blood group and tissue type.

Blood group

Tissue type

Infections and general health

Antibody tests

Your doctor will need to check if you have any antibodies in your blood that might make it harder for you to receive a transplant.

Antibodies to tissue types that are not your own can be formed if you’ve previously had a blood transfusion, pregnancy or transplant. Once these antibodies form, it is very difficult to remove them.

These antibodies increase the risk of some heart transplants being rejected. The team looking after you will let you know if you have these antibodies in your blood, and how they might affect a heart transplant.

How do high levels of antibodies affect heart transplants?

Heart, lung, blood vessel and specialist tests

The transplant team will want to know how healthy your lungs, liver, and kidney are, and whether you have any obstructions to your circulation outside the heart. They’ll also need to know whether you have any cancers or serious infections.

Heart tests

Many of these will be familiar to you:

Twelve lead ECG (electrocardiogram)
Heart scan (echocardiogram)
Stress test (exercise ECG or myocardial perfusion scan)
Right heart catheterisation
Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing

What is right heart catheterisation?

This test provides essential information on whether a transplanted heart will work in your circulation and also helps to assess how badly damaged your heart is.

What happens during the procedure?

Following local anaesthetic, a tube is placed in a large vein (usually in a neck vein).
Through this, a catheter (a long, flexible, hollow tube) is floated through the chambers in the right side of the heart and into the arteries in the lung.
The pressure in all these sites is measured and the output of the heart can also be checked.
The procedure takes about 30 minutes, and after the local anaesthetic starts working, all you will feel is mild discomfort.

Lung tests

Scans

Specialist tests

You may need additional specialist tests or to be seen by other doctors. Sometimes these tests find major medical issues that mean a heart transplant is not possible.

Some patients need to see a psychologist or psychiatrist. This is especially important if you’ve had problems remembering to take tablets. The team looking after you need to make sure you’ll be able to take your post-transplant medications.

Other tests