Here, I'll explain how to care for stable but immunocompromised patients like Joan. To provide a context, let's first review some basics about organ rejection and immunosuppression. After receiving a donor organ, a patient must take medication to suppress her immune response for the rest of her life. The dosage must be titrated to maintain therapeutic levels. Immunosuppression therapy can be complex.
Most patients take two or three immunosuppressants.
Throughout the first postoperative year, transplant centers monitor patients regularly, following established routines and testing protocols to detect early signs of rejection or adverse reactions from therapy. Lab testing is done frequently in the first months and then less frequently over time as the patient stabilizes. Changes in lab values can indicate rejection for certain organs. Signs and symptoms of rejection include flulike feelings, tenderness over the graft site, weight gain, edema, or fever. Although these signs and symptoms may occur at any time, the severity of symptoms generally indicates how far rejection has progressed.