Non-heart-beating Donation - Results of NHBD Transplantation

Results of NHBD Transplantation

NHBD kidney transplantation, from both controlled and uncontrolled donors, has been shown to have almost identical graft survival times and long-term function as kidneys from brain-stem dead donors. In the short-term they are prone to delayed graft function of around 7–14 days (this does not affect long term function in NHBD kidneys) and have a failure rate of around 5-10% (compared to 3-5% for kidneys from brain-stem dead donors).

There is not as much long-term data for NHBD liver transplants, but published results are promising. Unlike in kidneys, where delayed graft function simply means a need for dialysis, delayed graft function in livers can be fatal, which is why only controlled donors are used for livers. Intra-hepatic biliary strictures are a complication more common in NHBD livers than in brain-stem dead donors. Many transplant surgeons feel that NHBD livers should not be used to transplant acutely sick patients with acute liver failure.

Long-term data on NHBD lung transplants is not yet available.

The latest results of transplants of NHBD/DCD organs are presented every 2 years at the International Meeting on Transplantation from Non-Heart Beating Donors, which is held in London since 2002.

In 2010 the 5th International Meeting on Transplantation from Non-Heart Beating Donors (NHBD2010) will be held in London on the 13-15 May in conjunction with the European Liver and Intestine Transplant Association (ELITA) Annual Meeting.