Pulmonary mechanics and surfactant measurement in canine lungs following reimplantation. Thorax 24

The left lung was reimplanted in 18 dogs. Failure of the venous anastomosis was the chief technical complication. Thirteen dogs survived until killed from eight days to 15 weeks after the operation. There was an immediate fall in total pulmonary compliance following the procedure, then a return to near normal within eight days. Surfactant and lung stability were normal. In each case there was a marked reduction in the gas volume of the reimplanted lung. The chief problem that prevents the use of pul-monary transplantation as a therapeutic measure is that of graft rejection. However, problems con-cerning operative technique and the physiological function of the transplanted lung also remain unsolved. These may be studied by pulmonary reimplantation in animals. Successful reimplantation of a dog's lung was first reported by Mdtras in 1950, and although re-implantation has been extensively studied since, an unacceptably high mortality occurs in mos