in focus
Proportion of deceased donors with a history of IV drug use and death due to drug overdose during 2008 and 2018 by region
Based on data from the national Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN).
If an organ donor is an active intravenous drug user, their risk of acute hepatitis C (HCV) infection is higher than almost any other behavioral risk factor.
The increasing opiate epidemic in the U.S. has impacted every region. Because of this tragedy, more transplants, especially those from donors that could place the potential recipient at increased risk of disease transmission, are being completed.
Though there is research detailing the successful use of organs from donors who are currently using and abusing drugs, challenges remain and clinicians and patients continue to be cautious, especially regarding the risks of inadvertently acquiring viral hepatitis and/or HIV.
Fortunately, hepatitis B remains relatively uncommon in the U.S. and unanticipated HIV transmissions have not been documented since the new Public Health Service (PHS) Increased Risk Guidelines were put into place in 2013. The safety and efficacy of HCV treatments in transplant is improving day by day, but according to cases studied in 2018 by the OPTN Ad Hoc Disease Transmission Advisory Committee (DTAC), unexpected hepatitis C (HCV) donor-derived transmissions have been on the rise.
Read more about the committee’s findings and an update on its work presented at the spring 2019 regional meetings.
In focus
Making organ recovery transportation safer for transplant teams
Despite a decade since a 2007 fatal plane crash involving a University of Michigan transplant team and pilots, there remain no federal standards regulating air and ground transportation of organ recovery personnel.
Policy keeps patients safe, protects medical urgency status
Staff and members collaborated to create emergency policy and IT changes to protect patients and keep the system nimble during the COVID-19 pandemic.
COVID-19: What have we learned to prepare for the next wave?
Insights on donor PCR testing from the May 11 third international organ donation and transplant town hall webinar.
COVID-19 pandemic ignites collaboration in the transplant community
Organ donation and transplantation organizations acted swiftly to produce town hall-style webinars that have been viewed more than 25,000 times.
