Intestinal Transplant Program
The Intestinal Transplant Program at Cincinnati Children’s provides comprehensive, innovative care for patients with short bowel syndrome, congenital enteropathies and pseudo-obstructions. With a one-year post-transplant survival rate of 100 percent according to the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients, our surgical outcomes are among the best in the United States.
Innovative Treatment Approach
Innovation is a hallmark of our program’s success. For example, our team:
- Offers sophisticated surgical techniques to help patients with Hirschsprung’s disease, pseudo-obstruction and motility issues achieve bowel control following transplant
- Proactively includes the colon in composite grafts
- Employs state-of-the-art techniques for treating graft vs. host disease, and has achieved excellent results with graft salvage for patients recovering from severe exfoliative rejection
- Follows stringent protocols for preventing and treating infectious diseases, and is one of only a few intestinal transplant programs with a full-time infectious disease specialist
- Pioneered the widely used “Cincinnati low-dose chemotherapy regimen” for post-transplant patients with Epstein-Barr virus-associated post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease
- Was among the first to work intimately with home health care providers to ensure a safe environment following hospital discharge
- Creates a “patient care passport,” an invaluable resource for families and physicians that details all significant clinical events related to the patient’s intestinal transplant care
Optimizing Surgical Outcomes
Transplant surgery is considered a last resort. Some patients are able to avoid it by participating in our Intestinal Rehabilitation Program, which offers extensive treatment options and training to help patients manage their long-term medical needs. Other patients have the option of undergoing autologous intestinal reconstructive surgery (e.g., bowel lengthening and tapering) in order to preserve bowel function and avoid transplant.
When a transplant is necessary, our team utilizes effective strategies to improve outcomes. Examples include:
- Placing the patient on the transplant list as quickly as possible
- Initiating pre-transplant therapies to address issues such as frequent blood stream infections or previously undiagnosed heart disease and renal insufficiency
- After surgery, using rigorous protocols to identify early signs of rejection and organ failure
- Working with families, referring physicians and home care providers to ensure that long-term follow-up care is in place
- Providing extensive education and training so that parents can care for their child at home