ObjectiveTo provide a practical reference for optimizing pediatric heart transplantation protocols in China by summarizing the perioperative management and short-term outcomes of pediatric heart transplant recipients at our center. MethodsWe retrospectively analyzed the medical records of all pediatric heart transplant patients performed at the Heart Center of the Children's Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, between June 2023 and September 2025. Data on donor and recipient demographics, indications for transplantation, use of mechanical circulatory support (MCS) as a bridge to transplant, perioperative clinical parameters, postoperative complications, immunosuppressive regimens, and follow-up outcomes were collected and analyzed. ResultsA total of 12 pediatric patients were enrolled, including 5 females and 7 males, with a median age of 9.7 (7.0, 13.0) years, all diagnosed with cardiomyopathy. MCS was used as a bridge to transplant in 58.33% of patients, including extracorporeal membrane oxygenation in 41.67% and a left ventricular assist device in 16.67%. The median donor heart cold ischemic time was 355 (306, 376) minutes. The most common postoperative complications were acute kidney injury (58.3%) and infection (58.3%). One week postoperatively, the median left ventricular ejection fraction recovered to 67.2% (61.8%, 71.0%). At discharge, 10 patients were in New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional class Ⅰ and 2 patients were in class Ⅱ. Over a follow-up period of 1 to 27 months, all patients survived with good cardiac function. ConclusionOur single-center experience demonstrates satisfactory short-term survival and cardiac function recovery in pediatric heart transplantation. Key areas requiring optimization include strategies for MCS bridging, management of prolonged donor heart cold ischemic time, and individualization of immunosuppressive regimens. Future development of a multi-center registry and genomics-guided precise immunosuppression strategies holds the potential to further improve long-term outcomes.
