Referral Process
Patients may be referred to the Inova Heart Transplant Program by their primary care physician, cardiologist, insurance/case manager, or refer themselves via fax, email or telephone. For telephone referrals, please email/fax the pertinent patient records.
- New Patients: Call our outreach patient access coordinator, Andrea Grajeda, at 703-776-6453 during business hours to set up your initial appointment. You may also send an email to andrea.grajeda@inova.org.
- Fax: 703-776-2797
- Email: heartfailure@inova.org
Referring physicians can consult with members of the transplant team 24 hours a day, seven days a week, through the center's patient referral numbers listed above.
Eligibility Criteria
Our multidisciplinary team of transplant physicians and coordinators review each patient's pre-transplant status carefully to determine whether the patient's condition warrants a transplant, based on the nature and severity of heart disease, patient motivation, and absence of contraindications. Even with contraindications, the patient may be eligible for another treatment option for advanced heart failure.
Ineligibility Guidelines
Patients with any of these conditions may not be eligible for a heart transplant because the surgery is less likely to be successful:
- Advanced age
- Poor circulation
- Diabetes mellitus
- Smoking
- Immune system unable to match with a compatible donor
- Active infection throughout the body
- Inability (or unwillingness) to follow a permanent regimen of certain medical instructions
- History of cancer or malignant tumors
- Certain diseases of the kidney, lung, or liver
- Irreversible pulmonary hypertension