Patients needing heart valve replacement, vascular reconstruction, aortic arch or RVOT repair, liver or pancreas transplant vascular reconstruction, femoral artery repair, and pediatric congenital heart defect surgery.

Taipei VGH Cardiovascular Tissue Bank, led by Director Chen-Ho Lu, is Taiwan's first heart-vascular tissue bank meeting international standards (GTP, AATB American Association of Tissue Banks). Since 1994 the team has conducted animal experiments at Taiwan's Pig Research Institute (now Animal Science Research); 1996 animal trials at Yang-Ming University; 1996 in-house developed XTT heart valve tissue viability test; since 1997 three VGH hospitals (Taipei/Kaohsiung/Taichung) collectively performed over 50 cryopreserved heart valve and cardiovascular surgeries (mean 11.8-year usage, >80% 10-year success). Heart surgeries: 45 aortic homograft RVOT reconstructions, 6 pulmonary homograft RVOTs, 21 aortic arch reconstructions, 15 aortic valve replacements. Transplant vascular reconstructions: liver transplant complex vascular (Director Chi-Chuan Lung, Director Chun-Shu Liu et al.); pancreas transplant (Director Yi-Ming Shyr et al.); femoral artery (Dr. I-Ming Chen, Tzu-Ting Kuo et al.). Provides large (10-15 mm), medium (7-15 mm), and small (2-5 mm) caliber vessels. World-first innovations: (1) XTT-viability test; (2) Taiwan's first internationally-standard tissue bank; (3) Taiwan-only provider of large/medium/small caliber homograft vessels; (4) Successfully developed homologous small-caliber vessels (umbilical vein/artery) with patents and 5 publications in Bioengineering; (5) Imminent clinical trial. The director serves on APSTB, EATB, AATB councils—the sole international representative on AATB's Physician Council and Science & Technology Council.