Long-term outcomes after transplantation after support with a pulsatile pediatric ventricular assist device

BACKGROUND There has been increasing use of durable ventricular assist devices (VAD) in children as a bridge to transplantation (BTT). The Berlin Heart investigational device exemption (IDE) trial was the first pediatric VAD trial to demonstrate excellent survival outcomes as a BTT. OBJECTIVES Our aim was to compare the expanded post-transplant outcomes for children enrolled in the Berlin Heart IDE trial to a matched Pediatric Heart Transplant Study (PHTS) cohort not requiring mechanical circulatory support (MCS). SETTING University Hospitals. METHODS This was a retrospective review of linked PHTS and Berlin Heart IDE databases for pediatric (≤18 years) recipients transplanted from 2007-2011. Subjects with