Clinical Trials of Cardiac Xenotransplantation in Newborns with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome

Hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) is a complex, incorrectable congenital heart malformation that is usually lethal during the first month of life. It occurs in at least one newborn per day in the United States alone. Although Norwood et al. [1] have reported improved (50–60) early survival following the first procedure of a staged surgical approach for palliation of these patients, palliative efforts of most surgeons have failed.