Attitude of the Omani population toward organ transplantation

Abstract

Transplantation from deceased donors is still scarce in Oman, mainly due to family refusal. We conducted a survey to learn the attitudes of the Omani population regarding transplantation.

Subjects and methods: Among 500 individuals who were distributed, a questionnaire 304 responded including 247 (81%) Omani and 57 (19%) foreign residents. There were 213 (70%) male respondents of the 304 subjects, 256 individuals (84%) were between 18 and 50 years of age, and 270 (89%) had at least a high school education.

Results: Thirty-eight percent and 32% of Omani individuals had a family member or a friend with kidney disease or a renal transplantation, respectively. Only 42% of respondents knew that renal transplantation is performed in Oman. It was encouraging to note that 65% of Omanis knew that commercial transplantations are against Islamic and international standards. Sixty-four percent of the respondents stated that they would donate a kidney to a relative with renal failure. Nevertheless, only 49% knew that donation after death is permitted by Islam; 42% respondents would accept a kidney from a deceased person. Only 35% would donate a kidney or an organ after death. We concluded that the awareness of the Omani people toward donation after death is low, with a great need for public education and awareness programs, particularly for high school and university students.