In 1985, the first heart transplant in Detroit was performed at Henry Ford Hospital. Over the years, the Henry Ford Heart Transplant Program has developed into one of the country's most successful integrated services with the ability to care for patients along the full continuum of heart failure. Our team provides comprehensive, state-of-the-art medical therapies as well as surgical interventions for patients with advanced heart failure. Our nationally recognized Heart Transplant Program is only one of two programs in Michigan.
For patients with end-stage heart failure, Henry Ford's heart failure specialists and cardiothoracic surgeons provide advanced heart failure therapies. These include evidence-based medical management as well as surgical interventions, such as high-risk coronary artery bypass grafting, high-risk valvular surgeries, as well as investigational devices. When a heart transplant is required, the Heart Transplant team works together to provide the best care for every patient.
Pioneering treatments are available for a number of Henry Ford patients with end-stage heart disease to help bridge the gap while waiting for a heart transplant. Henry Ford cardiothoracic surgeons were among the first in the United States to successfully implant the left ventricular assist device (LVAD), known as the HeartMate®, to help patients on the wait list for a heart transplant (bridge to transplant). Implantation of a LVAD helps restore blood flow to the patient's organs and safely allows the patient to leave the hospital while awaiting transplantation.
Patients from across the region seek care at Henry Ford Hospital because of our comprehensive heart transplant program. Henry Ford's expert surgical team performs adult transplants at Henry Ford Hospital and for children in collaboration with cardiovascular physicians at Children's Hospital of Michigan.
