Organ donation during the COVID-19 pandemic

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.

COVID-19 and the Kidney: From Epidemiology to Clinical Practice

“…In particular, each Transplant Center had to evaluate the possibility of performing a kidney transplant in relation to the availability of intensive care units and the risk of ICU admission for the individual patient [138]. In addition, during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, organ donation and transplantation experienced significant changes: organ authorization decreased by 11%; the number of organs transplanted decreased by 18%; and organ recovery for transplantation fell by 17% [139].…”

2020 Clinical Update in Liver Transplantation

“…A questionnaire to determine the impact of COVID19 on all solid organ donations, comparing March-May of 2019 to March-May of 2020, was conducted with 17 organ procurement organizations (OPOs) in the United States and Puerto Rico. 12 This survey showed an 11% decrease in organ authorization by donor families, 17% decrease in total number of organs recovered, and an 18% decrease in the total number of organs transplanted in the 90-day period. Error!…”

Retrospective study of COVID-19 seroprevalence among tissue donors at the onset of the outbreak before implementation of strict lockdown measures in France

“…The current COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically modified donation and transplantation practices (Ahmed et al 2020 ). At the Lille Tissue Bank, the total number of skin and cornea procurements during the March to May 2020 period fell by 77% (n = 15 457 cm 2 vs n = 67 384 cm 2 ) and 63% (n = 65 vs n = 174 corneas) respectively when compared to the similar period in 2019.…”