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First Heart Transplant of a Prisoner: Through the Concrete Ceiling  


Author:  Scott T.  Anderson, MD, PhD, FACP, FACR.


Source: Volume 04, Number 03, March/April 2003 , pp.39-40(2)




Correctional Health Care Report

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Abstract: 

At the recent National Correctional Commission on Health Care meeting in Nashville, a multi-disciplinary panel met to discuss the implications of the first heart transplantation surgery in a correctional setting, an event which occurred in January of 2002. It was my privilege to present the case of “Mr. X,” (a pseudonym since I chose to protect his anonymity), the first inmate, we believe, to receive a heart transplantation. What have we learned? Did Mr. X, to coin a metaphor, burst through a concrete ceiling, reaching a zenith for health care of incarcerated persons? Or did his selection as a transplant pioneer lead to little benefit, at great cost? The answer may be “a little of both.” Let’s review his case history and try to learn from this historic case.

Keywords: postviral cardiomyopathy, Stanford, CNN, immunosuppressant, congestive heart failure

Affiliations:  1: California Medical Facility.

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