ISHLT Advisory Statement on the Implications of Pandemic Influenza for Thoracic Organ Transplantation

Published 15 May 2009

This statement was released jointly by the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation’s Education Committee and Scientific Council for Infectious Diseases.

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This statement has been prompted by the identification of a novel swine influenza A (H1N1) virus causing illness in humans in Mexico, the United States, in multiple countries in Europe, Asia, Central and South America, Australia and New Zealand. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the US Centre for Disease Control (CDC) began monitoring this pandemic spread in real time on April 20, 2009, with updates on their websites daily. The pandemic threat is currently at Alert Level 5 (sustained community level outbreaks with person-to-person spread in at least 2 countries within one WHO region) which is a strong signal that a pandemic is imminent, according to the WHO. This Alert Level will be revised by the WHO in accordance with rates of spread around the world.

This advisory statement has been produced by the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation to complement existing official guidance from national and international public health agencies. Please refer to your local and/ or national guidance and use this statement as complementary expert opinion on optimal management of patients pre and post thoracic organ transplantation in preparation for or during an outbreak of Pandemic Influenza.