Outcomes & Survival Rates
Penn Medicine is the largest heart transplant center in the Mid-Atlantic region and one of the top three heart transplant programs in the nation. Surgeons at Penn have performed nearly 800 heart transplants since the program began in 1988, more than all of the other centers in the region combined.
The Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (SRTR) is a national database of statistics related to solid organ transplantation – kidney, liver, pancreas, intestine, heart, and lung. Information in the registry is collected by the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) from every transplant center and organ procurement organization (OPO) in the country.
The SRTR provides useful information about transplant outcomes and transplant programs. While much of the SRTR data is used for statistical research that helps shape organ allocation policy and health care practices, the SRTR also reports statistics for patients.
These reports include outcomes concerning patients on the waiting list and those who receive transplants. Patients and families can also learn how these statistics differ from one transplant program to the next.
The following tables highlight recently published outcomes at one-month, one-year and three-year timeframes for the heart transplant program at Penn.
The percentage of transplanted organs that are still working after transplant is referred to as "Graft Survival".
The percentage of patients who are alive post-transplant is referred to as "Patient Survival".
Importantly, the SRTR outcomes take into account how sick the patients are at each individual transplant center. This is called the "Expected" outcome. This number is different from center to center depending on the characteristics of the patients each transplant center lists. The "Expected" outcome is what the SRTR 'expects' the outcomes to be for each transplant center based on the transplant center's unique patient populations.
The "National Average" provides the average graft and patient survival for all heart programs in the country.
Graft Survival Rates (Heart) National Average vs. Penn Medicine
| National Average | Penn Medicine |
|---|---|
| 1 Month | |
| 95.83% | 95.65% |
| 1 Year | |
| 88.94% | 90.2% |
| 3 Years | |
| 80.39% | 82.31% |
Patient Survival Rates (Heart) National Average vs. Penn Medicine
| National Average | Penn Medicine |
|---|---|
| 1 Month | |
| 96.03% | 97.2% |
| 1 Year | |
| 89.42% | 91.34% |
| 3 Years | |
| 81.22% | 83.72% |
For more information please visit the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (SRTR) website.
* Data source: UNOS/Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (SRTR). For Patients Receiving their First Transplant of this type between 01/01/2008 and 06/30/2010 for the 1 Month and 1 Year Models; between 07/01/2005 and 12/31/2007 for the 3 Year Model. SRTR data last published: July 2011.
