Use of normothermic regional perfusion may not impact public perception of organ donation

ByShawn M. Carter

Fact checked byGina Brockenbrough, MA

Key takeaways:

Most respondents reported they would undergo a donation procedure that maximized use of their organs.
Many respondents would be willing to donate a loved one’s organs using any procedure.

PHILADELPHIA — Using normothermic regional perfusion to maintain donatable organs after circulatory death may not impact public perceptions of organ donation, data show.

“We still have a barrier to doing [normothermic regional perfusion] NRP and that barrier is that we are so concerned about public perception,” Anji Wall, MD, PhD, FACS, of Baylor University Medical Center, said at the American Transplant Congress, here.

Qualified medical worker writing notes on paper — Most respondents would undergo a donation procedure that maximized the use of their organs. *Image: Adobe Stock.*

In a cross-sectional survey of 1,062 U.S. adults, researchers evaluated patient opinion on the ethical acceptability different donation procedures. Overall, 529 respondents were registered organ donors and 533 were non-registrants. Investigators surveyed views on trust in the medical system and willingness to donate in three specific scenarios: donation after brain death; donation after circulatory death with ex-situ heart perfusion; and donation after circulatory death with thoracoabdominal normothermic regional perfusion.

According to the results, most respondents (79%) agreed or strongly agreed they would want to undergo a donation procedure that maximized the use of their organs, the quality of their organs (81%), and that government (58%) and doctors (68%) should try to increase the number of organs available for transplantation.

Researchers also found that regardless of the donation type, many respondents reported a willingness to be donors or to donate a loved one’s organs using any procedure.

Registered donors were more likely to want to be donors in any scenario compared with non-registrants.

Wall said, “[It] is not the procedure. It is all about registration. Organ donor registration matters, and our questions are: ‘How do we educate people about how to be an organ donor?’ and ‘What information do we need to get to the public?’”

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Sources/Disclosures

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Source:

Wall A, et al. Poster 711. Presented at: American Transplant Congress; June 1-5, 2024; Philadelphia.

Disclosures: Wall reports no relevant financial disclosures.

American Transplant Congress

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Use of normothermic regional perfusion may not impact public perception of organ donation

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