Pediatric Heart Transplant

When a child is struggling against worsening heart failure from a severe cardiomyopathy or congenital heart disease, a heart transplant can offer a second chance at life.

11 years of expertise, 71 transplants, one of only 3 pediatric heart transplant programs in Florida For 11 years, Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital Heart Institute has been providing lifesaving expertise for children’s heart transplants. As one of the most active pediatric heart transplant programs in Florida our team of specialists provide extraordinary, patient- and family-centered care for children with life-threatening heart conditions that cannot be helped with conventional surgery or medical management.

Now more than ever, families can place their trust in us to safely care for their children when it matters most.

What Is a Heart Transplant?

A heart transplant replaces a child’s failing heart with a healthy heart from a deceased donor. After a transplant, children need lifelong anti-rejection medications and follow-up for their transplanted heart. With their new heart, many children are able to focus again on what they couldn’t before: being a kid.

Children who need heart transplants go on a transplant waiting list, based on how severe their condition is. The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) manages the waiting list for every patient in the nation. Learn more about the journey to a heart transplant.

Why Choose Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital for Heart Transplant?

Smart Snippet: Video
Datasource: Da'Realis Heart Transplant Story

Recognized for its excellence and comprehensive approach to cardiac care, our pediatric heart transplant program offers:

Outstanding outcomes: We do everything we can at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital to ensure a successful transplant. We also work with families long-term, to help children continue to thrive at home. Learn more about our outcomes.
National reputation: We started our heart transplant program in 2010 and have become one of the most active pediatric heart transplant centers in Florida. As leaders in transplant care in the state, we offer a second chance at life for children in and around Florida. Learn more about our story and how we built the heart transplant program to fill a need for this area’s sickest children.
Dedicated team of specialists: Multiple specialists come together to prepare and care for transplant patients before, during and after surgery. The transplant team includes:
- Cardiologists, including transplant cardiologists, interventionalists, electrophysiologists, and heart imaging experts
- Cardiac surgeons, including transplant, mechanical support/VAD (ventricular assist device) and congenital surgeons
- Nurses and nurse practitioners who specialize in transplant, heart failure and VAD care
- Intensivists, who specialize in pediatric critical care medicine
- Pediatric subspecialists, including cardiac anesthesiologists, infectious disease experts and others
Support for families: When you come to Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital, we’ll treat your child as we would our own. We understand how scared and overwhelmed parents can be. We take a patient- and family-centered approach, from your first appointment to lifelong follow-up care. We want to make children well again and support your whole family in the process. Find out about our resources for families.
Access to adult heart transplants: The success of our heart transplant program laid the groundwork for the adult heart transplant program within Memorial Healthcare System. Learn more about Memorial Cardiac and Vascular Institute. Our companion adult heart transplant program at Memorial Regional Hospital, on the same campus as Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital, ensures that our grown-up pediatric transplant recipients can receive expert, lifelong care for their transplanted heart.