Transplantation Anesthesia: The Role of the Anesthesiologist

Abstract

Anesthesiologists have been engaged in perioperative management of the transplant patient since transplantation surgery began in the 1960s. Cardiac and liver transplant anesthesia teams were common when I was training, while lung transplantation can involve either cardiac or thoracic anesthesia teams. Kidney transplant anesthesia was usually part of the routine noncardiac team, but optimal management protocols clearly impact organ survival. Today, it is becoming more common to see other organ transplants and management strategies being better defined to optimize both patient and organ survival. In identifying a center with a large and diverse practice, the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA) has always been a leader. In fact, the quality of their outcomes led them to propose the first “bundles” in transplant care. To edit this issue, I have asked Drs Mahajan and Wray from UCLA. Aman Mahajan, MD, PhD is Professor of Anesthesiology and Bioengineering. He is the Chair of the Department of Anesthesiology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA with expertise in Cardiothoracic Anesthesiology, Cardiac Electrophysiology, and Echocardiography. Christopher Wray, MD is Associate Clinical Professor for Liver Transplant and Cardiothoracic Anesthesiology and Co-Director for Liver Transplant Anesthesiology. Together, they have brought together a phenomenal group of authors to educate us on best current practices.