Donate Life: An Overview of Organ, Tissue and Eye Donation

1
Donate Life An Overview of Organ, Tissue and
Eye Donation

• UW Health
• Organ Procurement Organization

2
Why is Organ Donation So Important?

• There are nearly 102,000 people currently waiting
  for a transplant in the United States, more than
  2,500 are children
• Every 13 minutes another name is added to the
  waiting list
• Despite record numbers of transplants - the list
  is growing at the rate of more than 300 patients
  each month

3
Why is Organ Donation So Important? (cont.)

• 6,500 adults and children died awaiting an organ
  transplant last year.
• 18 people a day die on the waiting list.
• More than 90 of Americans approve of organ
  donation, yet less than half say yes when asked
  to make their decision legal

4

• US Transplant Waiting List
• Type of Transplant of Patients Waiting
• Kidney 79,642
• Liver 15,821
• Lung 1,935
• Heart 2,778
• Heart-lung 84
• Kidney-pancreas 2,235
• Pancreas 1,504
• Intestines 212
• Total patients 101,949
• Source Organ Procurement and Transplant Network
• Updated 5/3/2009

5

• Wisconsin Waiting List
• Type of Transplant of Patients Waiting
• Kidney 1,079
• Liver 214
• Lung 66
• Heart 77
• Heart-lung 0
• Kidney-pancreas 55
• Pancreas 11
• Intestine 2
• Total patients 1,466
• Source Organ Procurement and Transplant Network
• Updated 5/3/2009

6

• Challenges Donors, Transplants Waiting
  Patients

Data based on snapshot of the waiting list on
the last day of each year
7
What Can Be Donated?
8
Kidneys

• End Stage Renal Disease
• Diabetes with Renal Disease
• High Blood Pressure
• Polycystic Kidney Disease

9
Heart

• Cardiomyopathy
• Coronary Artery Disease
• Congenital Heart Disease
• Valvular Heart Diseases

10
Lungs

• Emphysema/COPD
• Cystic Fibrosis
• Pulmonary Fibrosis
• Primary Pulmonary Hypertension
• Congenital Defects

11
Liver

• Hepatitis
• A,B,C
• Cirrhosis
• Alcohol
• Medications
• Biliary Disease
• Metabolic
• Neoplasms

12
Isolated Pancreas

• Diabetes Type I without Renal Disease
• Hypoglycemic Unawareness
• Pancreas after Kidney Transplant

13
Simultaneous Kidney-Pancreas

• Diabetes Type I with End Stage Renal Disease

14
Small Intestines

• Short Gut Syndrome
• Severe Vascular Disease
• Frequently in Children

15
What Can Be Donated? (cont.)
Tissues and Eyes

• Skin for burn victims
• Bone
• Connective Tissue
• Ligaments
• Tendons
• Heart for valves/pericardium
• Arteries and Veins
• Eyes (corneas)

16
What Can Be Donated? (cont.)

• The Differences.

• Organ Donation
• The patient must be maintained by a mechanical
  ventilator
• Organs must be properly preserved and
  transplanted quickly
• Life-saving procedure

• Tissue/Eye Donation
• Occurs in the first 24 hours after the heart has
  stopped beating
• The tissues can be preserved and used at a later
  date
• Life-enhancing procedure

17

• Current Criteria for Organ Donation
• Patients who have been declared brain dead
• OR
• Patients with severe neurological injury and
  family and MD are discussing withdrawing
  ventilator support
• Up to age 75 flexible there was a 96 y.o.
  donor this summer
• HIV (at this time)
• No active malignancy
• Exception Primary CNS tumors
• Note Only the OPO can determine
• donor suitability

18
Organ Preservation Time

• Heart 4 to 6 hours
• Lungs 4 to 6 hours
• Liver 12 hours
• Pancreas 12 to 18 hours
• Kidneys 72 hrs.
• Small Intestines 4 to 6 hrs.

19
Common Questions in Regards to Donation
?
20
Will the doctors do everything they can to try
and save me if they know my wishes to be a donor?

• Absolutely
• OPO is separate from the medical team treating
  the patient to ensure there is not conflict of
  interest
• Donation is only considered after all efforts to
  save a patients life have been pursued by the
  medical team

21
How does religion relate to organ donation?

• The majority of religions support organ donation
• Most religions view organ and tissue donation as
  a charitable act
• Talk to your religious leader about donation

22
Will donation disfigure the body?

• No
• Organs are removed through surgical incisions
• Areas for tissue donation are reconstructed and
  concealed by clothing
• A family is able to have an open casket funeral

23
Does donation cost a family money?

• No
• Each recovering agency pays for all expenses
  associated with the recovery
• Those costs are passed on to the recipients and
  their insurance companies
• The family is responsible for the normal funeral
  expenses

24
Will donation cause any delays with funeral
arrangements?

• No
• The recovering agency will make certain the body
  is released to the funeral home on time
• No extra planning is required by families of
  organ and tissue donors

25
Can you pay to get an organ?

• No
• Allocation Criteria
• Blood type
• Medical urgency
• Tissue match
• Waiting time
• Organ size
• Immune status
• Geographic distance

26
Will the organs be transplanted locally?

• Yes, If.
• There are local recipients for the organ
• There are no status one patients in our region
  (livers only)
• There are no perfect tissue typing matched
  recipients in the U.S. (kidneys only)
• Approximately 85-90 of all organs donated here
  are used for transplants here

27
Can the Donor Family and Recipients meet each
other?

• Yes
• Initial contact is coordinated by the OPO because
  of federal privacy regulations
• All recipients are encouraged to write to their
  donor families
• Meetings can be arranged if both parties sign a
  consent and release of information form

28
The Two Ds

• Decide
• Get a Donor Dot on and sign your Drivers
  License or State ID card
• 2. Discuss
• Talk to your family about your wishes
• In Wisconsin until you turn 18 years old we
  must have the consent of your family!

29
Legal Next of Kin

• Healthcare Agent
• Spouse
• Adult Children
• Parents
• Adult Siblings
• Adult Grandchildren
• Grandparents
• An adult who exhibited special care concern
• Legal Guardian
• Coroner or Medical Examiner

30
Through donation ...
...lives are changed forever