Infection of Ventricular Assist Device Detected and Monitored by 18F-FDG PET/CT.

We report a case of a 59-year-old man who presented with fever, sepsis, and left cervicothoracic cutaneous inflammation 13 months after implantation of Jarvik 2000 device. Device infection was suspected and F-FDG PET/CT showed an intense and homogeneous uptake along driveline cable. Bacteriological local sample showed Staphylococcus aureus. After adapted antibiotherapy, control F-FDG PET/CT displays treatment efficacy with no residual uptake in driveline. F-FDG PET/CT could be an important tool for early noninvasive detection of left ventricular assist device infection and monitoring antibiotherapy response.

Heart transplantation in adults with congenital heart disease.

With the advances in congenital cardiac surgery and postoperative care, an increasing number of children with complex congenital heart disease now reach adulthood. There are already more adults than children living with a congenital heart defect, including patients with complex congenital heart defects. Among these adults with congenital heart disease, a significant number will develop ventricular dysfunction over time. Heart failure accounts for 26-42% of deaths in adults with congenital heart defects. Heart transplantation, or heart-lung transplantation in Eisenmenger syndrome, then becomes the ultimate therapeutic possibility for these patients. This population is deemed to be at high risk of mortality after heart transplantation, although their long-term survival is similar to that of patients transplanted for other reasons. Indeed, heart transplantation in adults with congenital heart disease is often challenging, because of several potential problems: complex cardiac and vascular anatomy, multiple previous palliative and corrective surgeries, and effects on other organs (kidney, liver, lungs) of long-standing cardiac dysfunction or cyanosis, with frequent elevation of pulmonary vascular resistance. In this review, we focus on the specific problems relating to heart and heart-lung transplantation in this population, revisit the indications/contraindications, and update the long-term outcomes.