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Multicenter Study
. 2020 Nov;20(11):3081-3088.
doi: 10.1111/ajt.16199. Epub 2020 Aug 29.

Organ donation during the COVID-19 pandemic

Ola Ahmed  1 , Diane Brockmeier  2 , Kevin Lee  2 , William C Chapman  1 , M B Majella Doyle  1
Affiliations
Multicenter Study

Organ donation during the COVID-19 pandemic

Ola Ahmed et al. Am J Transplant. 2020 Nov.

Abstract

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is a rapidly changing circumstance with dramatic policy changes and universal efforts to deal with the initial crisis and minimize its consequences. To identify changes to organ donation and transplantation during this time, an anonymous web-based survey was distributed to 19 select organ procurement organizations (OPOs) throughout the United States comparing 90-day activity during March-May 2020 and March-May 2019. Seventeen OPOs responded to the survey (response rate of 89.5%). Organ authorization decreased by 11% during the current pandemic (n = 1379 vs n = 1552, P = .0001). Organ recovery for transplantation fell by 17% (P = .0001) with a further 18% decrease in the number of organs transplanted (P = .0001). Donor cause of death demonstrated a 4.5% decline in trauma but a 35% increase in substance abuse cases during the COVID-19 period. All OPOs reported significant modifications in response to the pandemic, limiting the onsite presence of staff and transitioning to telephonic approaches for donor family correspondence. Organ donation during the current climate has seen significant changes and the long-term implications of such shifts remain unclear. These trends during the COVID-19 era warrant further investigation to address unmet needs, plan for a proportionate response to the virus and mitigate the collateral impact.

Keywords: clinical research/ practice; donors and donation; health services and outcomes research; infection and infectious agents-viral; organ procurement and allocation; organ procurement organization; organ transplantation in general.

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Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Locations of organ procurement organizations (OPOs) in the survey. Arkansas Regional Recovery Agency (AR); Nevada Donor Network (NV); Our Legacy (FL); Kentucky Organ Donor Affiliates (KY); Midwest Transplant Network (KS); Donor Network West (CA); Lifefeshare of Oklahoma (OK); Louisiana Organ Procurement Agency (LA); Donor Network of Arizona (AZ); Mid-America Transplant (MO); Donor Alliance (CO); LifeSource (MN); LifeBanc (OH); Gift of Hope (IL); LifeLink of Florida (FL); LifeLink of Georgia (GA); LifeLink of Puerto Rico; Iowa Donor Network (IA); Donor Connect (UT) [Color figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com]
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Monthly trends in referral numbers received by studied organ procurement organizations (OPOs) during March to May 2019 and March to May 2020 [Color figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com]
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Monthly trends in donor family authorization during March to May 2019 and March to May 2020 [Color figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com]
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
Monthly trends in organ recovery during March to May 2019 and March to May 2020 [Color figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com]
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