Heart transplantation ameliorates ambulation capacity in patients with muscular dystrophy ― An analysis of 9 cases ―

Abstract

Background: Heart transplantation (HTx) is reported to have a comparable effect on the prognosis of heart failure patients without muscular disease and for those with muscular dystrophy (MD). However, little is known about the changes in muscular diseases in patients with MD after HTx. Methods and Results: We assessed the ambulatory capacity of 9 patients with MD who underwent HTx. All patients demonstrated improvement in ambulation to varying degrees and 1 patient successfully climbed Mount Fuji 3.8 years after HTx. Conclusions: HTx potentially improves not only the prognosis but also the ambulatory capacity of patients with MD.