Long-term hazards of Thorotrast.

Abstract

Necropsy on the first heart transplantation in man confirmed that death was due to extensive bilateral pneumonia and not to rejection of the heart. Signs of rejection, however, were demon- strated histologically, but were of a low order compared with those seen in the transplanted dog heart. How far the mildness of the rejection signs is to be ascribed to species differences, immunosuppressive drugs and procedures, postoperative rest, and nursing and medical care, or to the good matching of leucocyte antigens cannot at the moment be assessed.