Most of the 27 participants were able to reach altitudes of more than 18,000 feet — exclusively personal bests. All participants were under close medical supervision.

The program performed 149 lung transplants in 2025, the most ever in one year at Vanderbilt Health, and is now the second largest lung transplant center in the U.S.

A Chattanooga patient says she’s feeling great after becoming the first to receive the robotic‑assisted central line in Nashville.

Hospitals that earn accreditation have proven exceptional competency in treating patients with heart attack symptoms. The new designation will last until Jan. 31, 2029.

Researchers retrospectively reviewed 552 Vanderbilt Health patients from Jan. 2024 to Dec. 2025, placing them in 3 groups: those with no sternotomies, those with one, and those with two or more.

The technique, termed REUP (rapid recovery with extended ultraoxygenated preservation), avoids traditional methods that reanimate the heart within or outside the donor’s body.