Now that I am immunosuppressed, am I susceptible to infections?

The antirejection medications that you are taking to prevent and treat rejection tell your immune system to accept your new organ. In doing so, they may also tell your immune system to accept other foreign invaders that it ordinarily would fight. As a consequence, taking antirejection medications can place you at greater risk for developing an infection. The most common infections result from viruses that have been lying dormant in your system or in the donated organ. To prevent infection, you will take antibacterial, antivirus, and antifungal medications for 3 to 6 months after your surgery.

If an infection is suspected, your caregivers may take sputum (the substance coughed up from your lungs), blood, and urine samples as well as samples from your catheter, wound, and drain sites. Signs that you may notice include fever, tiredness or fatigue, diarrhea or vomiting, redness or drainage around your incision or tube site, or a cough and sore throat. If an infection develops, it is treated with medication specific for the type of infection. The infectious disease specialist works with the transplant team to manage and treat infections. If an infection develops after you have been discharged from the hospital, it may be treated with antibiotics on an outpatient basis. However, some people need to be readmitted to the hospital for treatment with intravenous medications.