Non-Immunosuppressant Medication Use in Heart Transplant Patients: A Guide for Pharmacists

For heart transplant patients, there are a number of non-immunosuppressant medications that are routinely prescribed to mitigate the side-effects of immunosuppression, treat the related complications, and improve long-term survival. This review focuses on the medications used to prevent and manage cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV), hypertension, dyslipidemia and osteoporosis. The rationale and evidence supporting their use are summarized and the immunosuppressant drugs are only discussed briefly, as they relate to each of these medical issues. Pharmacy practitioners are likely to encounter patients post-cardiac transplant in a variety of clinical settings; therefore, a concise appreciation of the principles for the long-term medical management of these patients is important when providing collaborative care.