The impact of left ventricular dysfunction on cardiac donor transplant rates

Echocardiographic surrogate of left ventricular stroke work in a model of brain stem death donors

BACKGROUND

The commonest echocardiographic measurement, left ventricular ejection fraction, can not necessarily predict mortality of recipients following heart transplantation potentially due to afterload dependency. Afterload-independent left ventricular stroke work index (LVSWI) is alternatively recommended by the current guideline; however, pulmonary artery catheters are rarely inserted in organ donors in most jurisdictions. We propose a novel non-invasive echocardiographic parameter, Pressure-Strain Product (PSP), as a potential surrogate of catheter-based LVSWI. This study aimed to investigate if PSP could correlate with catheter-based LVSWI in an ovine model of brain stem death (BSD) donors. The association between PSP and myocardial mitochondrial function in the post-transplant hearts was also evaluated.

METHODS

Thirty-one female sheep (weight 47 ± 5 kg) were divided into two groups; BSD (n = 15), and sham neurologic injury (n = 16). Echocardiographic parameters including global circumferential strain (GCS) and global radial strain (GRS) and pulmonary artery catheter-based LVSWI were simultaneously measured at 8-timepoints during 24-h observation. PSP was calculated as a product of GCS or GRS, and mean arterial pressure for PSPcirc or PSPrad, respectively. Myocardial mitochondrial function was evaluated following 6-h observation after heart transplantation.

RESULTS

In BSD donor hearts, PSPcirc (n = 96, rho = .547, p < .001) showed the best correlation with LVSWI among other echocardiographic parameters. PSPcirc returned AUC of .825 to distinguish higher values of cardiomyocyte mitochondrial function (cut-off point; mean value of complex 1,2 O2 Flux) in post-transplant hearts, which was greater than other echocardiographic parameters.

CONCLUSIONS

PSPcirc could be used as a surrogate of catheter-based LVSWI reflecting mitochondrial function.

Evolution of heart transplant donor characteristics in the 21st century: A United States single center's experience

Despite a record setting number of heart transplants performed annually, the national donor shortage continues to plague transplant teams across the United States. Here we describe the barriers to adaptation of numerous "non-traditional" orthotopic heart transplant donor characteristics including donors with hepatitis C virus, those meeting criteria for donation after cardiac death, donors with coronavirus disease 19 infection, donors with the human immunodeficiency virus, and grafts with left ventricular systolic dysfunction. Our center's objective was to increase our transplant volume by expanding our donor pool from "traditional" donors to these "non-traditional" donors. We detail how medical advances such as certain laboratory studies, pharmacologic interventions, and organ care systems have allowed our center to expand the donor pool thereby increasing transplantation volume without adverse effects on outcomes.

Relationship between donor ejection fraction, left ventricular wall thickness and mortality in heart transplants recipients

This study explored the impact of donor left ventricular ejection fraction (EF) and left ventricular wall thickness (LVWT) on mortality among heart transplant (HTx) recipients. Utilizing data from the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) registry, adult HTx recipients between 2006-2022 were analyzed. Patients were categorized into four groups based on donor EF(>50 % or ≤50 %) and LVWT(<1.4 cm or ≥1.4 cm). 21,012 patients were included. There were significant differences in baseline characteristics among the groups. Unadjusted mortality was 6.3 %, 6.0 %, 6.0 %, and 2.4 %(p=0.86) at 30-days; 16.2 %, 13.5 %, 16.8 %, and 7.3 %(p=0.08) at 1-year; and 32.2 %, 29.2 %, 35.4 %, and 29.0 %(p=0.18) at 5-years, respectively. In addition, adjusted mortality did not differ across the groups. There were no significant differences in recipient mortality in groups based on donor EF and LVWT. Expanding the donor selection criteria would allow for increase in the donor pool and assist in decreasing the mortality, while on the waitlist for HTx.

Left Ventricular Dysfunction Associated With Brain Death: Results From the Donor Heart Study

BACKGROUND

Left ventricular dysfunction in potential donors meeting brain death criteria often results in nonuse of donor hearts for transplantation, yet little is known about its incidence or pathophysiology. Resolving these unknowns was a primary aim of the DHS (Donor Heart Study), a multisite prospective cohort study.

METHODS

The DHS enrolled potential donors by neurologic determination of death (n=4333) at 8 organ procurement organizations across the United States between February 2015 and May 2020. Data included medications administered, serial diagnostic tests, and transthoracic echocardiograms (TTEs) performed: (1) within 48 hours after brain death was formally diagnosed; and (2) 24±6 hours later if left ventricular (LV) dysfunction was initially present. LV dysfunction was defined as an LV ejection fraction <50% and was considered reversible if LV ejection fraction was >50% on the second TTE. TTEs were also examined for presence of LV regional wall motion abnormalities and their reversibility. We assessed associations between LV dysfunction, donor heart acceptance for transplantation, and recipient 1-year survival.

RESULTS

An initial TTE was interpreted for 3794 of the 4333 potential donors by neurologic determination of death. A total of 493 (13%) of these TTEs showed LV dysfunction. Among those donors with an initial TTE, LV dysfunction was associated with younger age, underweight, and higher NT-proBNP (N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide) and troponin levels. A second TTE was performed within 24±6 hours for a subset of donors (n=224) with initial LV dysfunction; within this subset, 130 (58%) demonstrated reversibility. Sixty percent of donor hearts with normal LV function were accepted for transplant compared with 56% of hearts with reversible LV dysfunction and 24% of hearts with nonreversible LV dysfunction. Donor LV dysfunction, whether reversible or not, was not associated with recipient 1-year survival.

CONCLUSIONS

LV dysfunction associated with brain death occurs in many potential heart donors and is sometimes reversible. These findings can inform decisions made during donor evaluation and help guide donor heart acceptance for transplantation.

Donor heart selection: Evidence-based guidelines for providers

The proposed donor heart selection guidelines provide evidence-based and expert-consensus recommendations for the selection of donor hearts following brain death. These recommendations were compiled by an international panel of experts based on an extensive literature review.

Heart transplantation from donors with left ventricular ejection fraction under forty percent

BACKGROUND

Heart transplantation (HTx) remains the treatment of choice for patients with end-stage advanced heart failure. In 2016, the Shumakov National Medical Research Center commenced performing HTx from donors with abnormal left ventricular systolic function (LVEF < 40%). The aim of this study was to evaluate early and late outcomes of recipients after HTx from donors with abnormal LV systolic function.

METHODS

Four hundred eighty seven patients underwent HTx in our institution from January 2016 to December 2018. 27 (5.5%) patients were transplanted using cardiac allografts from donors with LVEF <40%.

RESULTS

A total of 47 donors with LVEF <40% were evaluated for potential donation. Most heart donors revealed a left ventricular ejection fraction ranging between 30% and 40%. Twenty-five recipients required urgent HTx. Four recipients presented with early allograft dysfunction. All surviving recipients demonstrated early (85.2%) or delayed (14.8%) recovery of systolic function (LVEF > 60%).

CONCLUSION

The use of dysfunctional donor hearts with impaired LV systolic function may be a realistic approach for expanding the donor pool. However, organs from such donors should be used for recipient cohorts requiring an urgent HTx, particularly for those with pretransplant mechanical circulatory support allowing for hemodynamic support in cases of early graft dysfunction in the post-transplant period.

New Approaches to Donor Selection and Preparation in Heart Transplantation

Purpose of review

With increasing survival of patients with stage D heart failure, the demand for heart transplantation has increased. The supply of donor hearts remains relatively limited. Strategies have been investigated and new technologies have been developed to expand the current donor pool. These new approaches will be discussed herein.

Recent findings

Donor hearts are often considered “marginal” due to risk factors such as older age, size mismatch with the intended recipient, prolonged ischemic time, presence of left ventricular hypertrophy, and hepatitis B/C infection. We reviewed recent data regarding the use of donor hearts with these risk factors and suggest ways to safely liberalize current donor heart acceptance criteria. New technologies such as temperature-controlled transport systems and ex vivo cardiac perfusion methods have also demonstrated promising short-term and intermediate outcomes as compared with routine cold storage, by promoting heart preservation and enabling heart procurement from remote sites with shorter cold ischemic time. Recent use of hearts from donation after circulatory death donors has demonstrated comparable outcomes to conventional donation after brain death, which can further expand the current donor pool.

Summary

Careful selection of “marginal” donor hearts, use of ex vivo cardiac perfusion, and acceptance of hearts after circulatory death may expand our current cardiac donor pool with comparable outcomes to conventional donor selection and preparation methods.

Impact of Deceased Donor Management on Donor Heart Use and Recipient Graft Survival

BACKGROUND

Current risk-adjusted models used to predict donor heart use and cardiac graft survival from organ donors after brain death (DBDs) do not include bedside critical care data. We sought to identify novel independent predictors of heart use and graft survival to better understand the relationship between donor management and transplantation outcomes.

STUDY DESIGN

We conducted a prospective observational study of DBDs managed from 2008 to 2013 by 10 organ procurement organizations. Demographic data, critical care parameters, and treatments were recorded at 3 standardized time points during donor management. The primary outcomes measures were donor heart use and cardiac graft survival.

RESULTS

From 3,433 DBDs, 1,134 hearts (33%) were transplanted and 969 cardiac grafts (85%) survived after 684 ± 392 days of follow-up. After multivariable analysis, independent positive predictors of heart use included standard criteria donor status (odds ratio [OR] 3.93), male sex (OR 1.68), ejection fraction > 50% (OR 1.64), and partial pressure of oxygen to fraction of inspired oxygen ratio > 300 (OR 1.31). Independent negative predictors of heart use included donor age (OR 0.94), BMI > 30 kg/m² (OR 0.78), serum creatinine (OR 0.83), and use of thyroid hormone (OR 0.78). As for graft survival, after controlling for known recipient risk factors, thyroid hormone dose was the only independent predictor (OR 1.04 per μg/h).

CONCLUSIONS

Modifiable critical care parameters and treatments predict donor heart use and cardiac graft survival. The discordant relationship between thyroid hormone and donor heart use (negative predictor) vs cardiac graft survival (positive predictor) warrants additional investigation.

Cardiac Transplantation Using Hearts With Transient Dysfunction: Role of Takotsubo-Like Phenotype

BACKGROUND

The impact of different types of regional wall motion abnormalities (RWMAs), including the Takotsubo syndrome-like (TTS-like) phenotype, on posttransplant outcomes when using donor hearts with transient left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD) is unknown. We evaluated the prevalence, clinical characteristics, and prognostic association of different RWMAs including TTS-like hypokinesis and posttransplant outcomes when using donor hearts with transient LVSD.

METHODS

From all adult (≥18 years) heart transplants in United Network of Organ Sharing between January 2007 and September 2015, we identified 472 donor hearts with improving or transient LVSD, defined as left ventricular ejection fraction ≤ 40% on initial transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE) that improved to ≥50% on follow-up TTE during donor evaluation. These improved LVSD donors were then subdivided into 3 groups based on RWMAs on the initial TTE, TTS-like (49, 10.38%), non-TTS RWMAs (74, 15.68%), and diffuse global hypokinesis (349, 73.94%), and compared for baseline characteristics and posttransplant outcomes with follow up until June 2018.

RESULTS

Donors with TTS-like LVSD were older and more likely to be female. The type of RWMA on initial TTE (including TTS-like) of transient LVSD donor hearts was not associated with 1-year or 5-year posttransplant mortality. Posttransplant functional status scores of recipients (at 1 year) and donor left ventricular ejection fraction (at median follow-up of 3.6 years) improved in all 3 subgroups. Rates of stroke or pacemaker predischarge were also similar.

CONCLUSIONS

In the largest analysis of transplanted donor hearts with transient LVSD, 1 in 4 had RWMAs on the initial TTE, but this was not associated with adverse posttransplant outcomes. Donor hearts with initial LVSD should be pursued irrespective of TTS-like hypokinesis or other RWMAs.

Myocardial Stunning After Electrocution With Complete Reversibility Within 24 Hours: Role of Repeat Transthoracic Echocardiograms in Potential Cardiac Transplant Donors

Despite the development of ventricular assist devices, cardiac transplantation remains an important procedure for patients with advanced heart failure. The number of transplants done annually has remained stable because of lack of of donors. Left ventricular systolic dysfunction remains one of the most important reasons for seeking a donor heart. Myocardial stunning is an important cause of reversible systolic dysfunction. Electrical injury is a recognized cause of myocardial stunning with variable duration ranging from days to weeks. Repeating the transthoracic echocardiogram to look for reversibility of left ventricular dysfunction can be a cost-effective method to improve the selection of heart donors. This can significantly help to decrease critical organ shortage. We present a case of myocardial stunning after electrocution which was completely reversible within a few hours, thus meeting cardiac transplant donor criteria.

Donor selection in the modern era

The growing disparity between the supply of donor hearts for transplantation and the demand for such organs has led to liberalization of the criteria for donor heart acceptance over the past few decades. The upper age limit and size restrictions for donor heart acceptance continue to be revised and hearts are being routinely used from donors with left ventricular dysfunction, left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH), cocaine use, multiple medical co-morbidities and after cardiopulmonary resuscitation. This article reviews recent data for use of such "expanded criteria" donor hearts and suggests ways to further increase the donor pool, including use of hearts from donors with hepatitis C and after circulatory determination of death. Donor biomarkers and risk scores may eventually aid in heart acceptance decisions, while ethical issues surrounding information sharing with transplant recipients remain a topic of great debate.

Cardiac dysfunction following brain death in children: prevalence, normalization, and transplantation

OBJECTIVES

Cardiac dysfunction has been reported to occur in as much as 42% of adults with brain death, and may limit cardiac donation after brain death. Knowledge of the prevalence and natural course of cardiac dysfunction after brain death may help to improve screening and transplant practices but adequately sized studies in pediatric brain death are lacking. The aims of our study are to describe the prevalence and course of cardiac dysfunction after pediatric brain death.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study.

SETTING/SUBJECTS

We examined an organ procurement organization database (Life Center Northwest) of potential pediatric cardiac donors diagnosed with brain death between January 2011 and November 2013.

INTERVENTION

Transthoracic echocardiograms were reviewed for cardiac dysfunction (defined as ejection fraction <50% or the presence of regional wall motion abnormalities). Descriptive statistics were used to analyze clinical characteristics and describe longitudinal echocardiogram findings in a subgroup of patients. We examined for heterogeneity between cardiac dysfunction with respect to cause of brain death.

MEASUREMENT AND MAIN RESULTS

We identified 60 potential pediatric cardiac donors (age ≤ 18 yr) with at least one transthoracic echocardiogram following brain death. Cardiac dysfunction was present in 23 patients (38%) with brain death. Mean ejection fraction (37.6% vs 62.2%) and proportion of procured hearts (56.5% vs 83.8%) differed significantly between the groups with and without cardiac dysfunction, respectively. Of the 11 subjects with serial transthoracic echocardiogram data, the majority of patients with cardiac dysfunction (73%) improved over time, leading to organ procurement. No heterogeneity between cardiac dysfunction and particular causes of brain death was observed.

CONCLUSION

The frequency of cardiac dysfunction in children with brain death is high. Serial transthoracic echocardiograms in patients with cardiac dysfunction showed improvement of cardiac function in most patients, suggesting that initial decisions to procure should not solely depend on the initial transthoracic echocardiogram examination results.

Reliability of echocardiographic measurements of left ventricular systolic function in potential pediatric heart transplant donors

BACKGROUND

Echocardiogram reports, but not images, are usually available for the evaluation of potential donor hearts. To assess the reliability of local reports of potential pediatric heart donors, we compared echocardiographic measurements of left ventricular (LV) systolic function between local hospitals and a central echocardiography laboratory.

METHODS

We identified all potential donors aged <18 years managed by the California Transplant Donor Network from 2009 to 2013. Echocardiograms and reports were obtained from local hospitals. All studies were reviewed in a central laboratory by an experienced pediatric cardiologist blinded to local reports. Local and central measurements of fractional shortening (FS) were compared using the Bland-Altman method (mean difference ± 2 standard deviations). LV function was categorized based on FS as normal or mild, moderately, or severely depressed.

RESULTS

There were 70 studies from 59 donors with local and central measurements of FS. The mean difference between local and central FS was 3.9 ± 9.0. The limits of agreement ranged from -14.2 to 22. Twenty-five studies had discordant measurements of LV function, with 17 discordant by 1 category and 8 by 2 or more categories. Of 55 studies categorized as normal by local measurement, 6 were moderately to severely depressed by central review. Of 15 studies categorized as depressed by local measurement, 3 were normal by central review.

CONCLUSIONS

Local and central measurements of LV systolic function were discordant in 36% of studies. Given such discordance, efforts to obtain and view actual echocardiographic images should be part of the standard evaluation of potential pediatric heart donors.

Donor predictors of allograft use and recipient outcomes after heart transplantation

BACKGROUND

Despite a national organ-donor shortage and a growing population of patients with end-stage heart disease, the acceptance rate of donor hearts for transplantation is low. We sought to identify donor predictors of allograft nonuse, and to determine whether these predictors are in fact associated with adverse recipient post-transplant outcomes.

METHODS AND RESULTS

We studied a cohort of 1872 potential organ donors managed by the California Transplant Donor Network from 2001 to 2008. Forty-five percent of available allografts were accepted for heart transplantation. Donor predictors of allograft nonuse included age >50 years, female sex, death attributable to cerebrovascular accident, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, a positive troponin assay, left-ventricular dysfunction and regional wall motion abnormalities, and left-ventricular hypertrophy. For hearts that were transplanted, only donor cause of death was associated with prolonged recipient hospitalization post-transplant, and only donor diabetes mellitus was predictive of increased recipient mortality.

CONCLUSIONS

Whereas there are many donor predictors of allograft discard in the current era, these characteristics seem to have little effect on recipient outcomes when the hearts are transplanted. Our results suggest that more liberal use of cardiac allografts with relative contraindications may be warranted.

Beta-adrenergic receptor polymorphisms and cardiac graft function in potential organ donors

Prior studies have demonstrated associations between beta-adrenergic receptor (βAR) polymorphisms and left ventricular dysfunction-an important cause of allograft nonutilization for transplantation. We hypothesized that βAR polymorphisms predispose donor hearts to LV dysfunction after brain death. A total of 1043 organ donors managed from 2001-2006 were initially studied. The following βAR single nucleotide polymorphisms were genotyped: β1AR 1165C/G (Arg389Gly), β1AR 145A/G (Ser49Gly), β2AR 46G/A (Gly16Arg) and β2AR 79C/G (Gln27Glu). In multivariable regression analyses, the β2AR46 SNP was significantly associated with LV systolic dysfunction, with each minor allele additively decreasing the odds for LV ejection fraction <50%. The β1AR1165 and β2AR46 SNPs were associated with higher dopamine requirement during the donor management period: donors with the GG and AA genotypes had ORs of 2.64 (95% CI 1.52-4.57) and 2.70 (1.07-2.74) respectively for requiring >10 μg/kg/min of dopamine compared to those with the CC and GG genotypes. However, no significant associations were found between βAR SNPs and cardiac dysfunction in 364 donors managed from 2007-2008, perhaps due to changes in donor management, lack of power in this validation cohort, or the absence of a true association. βAR polymorphisms may be associated with cardiac dysfunction after brain death, but these relationships require further study in independent donor cohorts.

Wait, treat and see: echocardiographic monitoring of brain-dead potential donors with stunned heart

BACKGROUND

Heart transplantation is limited by a severe donor organ shortage. Potential donors with brain death (BD) and left ventricular dysfunction due to neurogenic stunning are currently excluded from donation--although such abnormalities can be reversible with aggressive treatment including Hormonal Treatment (HT) and deferred organ retrieval.

AIM

To assess the recovery of left ventricular dysfunction in potential brain-dead donors with hemodynamic instability treated by aggressive treatment and HT.

METHODS

In a single-center, observational study design, we evaluated 15 consecutive brain-dead potential donors (DBD) (8 males, age = 48 ± 15 years) with hemodynamic instability. All underwent standard hemodynamic monitoring and transthoracic 2-dimensional echo (2-DE) with assessment of Ejection Fraction (EF). Measurements were obtained before BD and after BD within 6 h, at 24 h and within 48 h. HT (with insulin, methylprednisolone, vasopressin and T3) was started as soon as possible to treat hemodynamic instability and avoid administration of norepinephrine (NE). Eligible potential heart donors underwent coronary angiography.

RESULTS

After HT, we observed a normalization of hemodynamic conditions with improvement of mean arterial pressure (pre = 68 ± 8 mmHg vs post = 83 ± 13 mmHg, p < .01), cardiac index (pre = 2.4 ± 0.6 L/min/m2 vs post 3.7 ± 1.2 L/min/m2, p < .05), EF (pre = 48 ± 15 vs post = 59 ± 3%, p < .01) without administration of norepinephrine (NE) in 67% of cases. Five potential donors were excluded from donation (opposition, n = 3, tubercolosis n = 1, malignancy n = 1). At pre-harvesting angiography, coronary artery stenosis was present in 2 of the 10 consented donors. Eight hearts were uneventfully transplanted. No early graft failure occurred and all eight recipients were alive at 6-month follow-up.

CONCLUSION

In BD donors, intensive treatment including HT is associated with improvement of regional and global LV function and reverse remodeling detectable by transthoracic 2DE. Donor hearts with recovered LV function may be eligible for uneventful heart transplant. The wait (in brain death), treat (with HT) and see (with 2D echo) strategy can help rescue organs suitable for heart donation.

Donor scoring system for heart transplantation and the impact on patient survival

BACKGROUND

The aim of this study was to design and validate a heart donor score that reflects experts' perceived risk of allograft failure.

METHODS

All heart donors reported to Eurotransplant between January 1, 2005 and December 31, 2008 (N = 4,110) were used to create a donor score. Based on observed discard rates and using multivariate regression, points were assigned for the following donor factors: age; cause of death; body mass index (BMI); diabetes mellitus (DM); duration of ICU stay; compromised history (drug, abuse, sepsis, meningitis, malignancy, HBsAg(+) or anti-HCV(+)); hypertension; cardiac arrest; echocardiography; coronary angiogram; serum sodium; and noradrenaline and dopamine/dobutamine doses. The donor score was obtained by adding all points. All heart donors reported to Eurotransplant in 2009 were included to validate the score (N = 885).

RESULTS

All donor factors, except BMI, DM and duration of ICU stay, significantly predicted discard. Based on the median value of the score, donors were classified into low-risk donors (LRDs: ≤16 points) and high-risk donors (HRDs: ≥17 points). In the validation set, discard rates were significantly different when comparing HRDs (35%) and LRDs (7%) (p < 0.0001). In addition, the heart donor score was significantly associated with 3-year survival: LRD 81.5% vs HRD 70.0% (p = 0.004).

CONCLUSIONS

The heart donor score accurately reflects the likelihood of organ acceptance and predicts long-term patient mortality. Application of this score at time of donor reporting may facilitate donor risk assessment and allow for more appropriate matching of extended criteria donor hearts.

Ventricular dysfunction associated with brain trauma is cause for exclusion of young heart donors

OBJECTIVE

Ventricular dysfunction (VD) in the context of brain death (BD) is one medical cause that may be reversed to extend the range of donors for cardiac transplant programs. The aim of this study was to identify and quantify the causes for exclusion of potential heart donors and to define risk factors for VD among the BD population.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This study of 100 heart-beating potential donors defined subjects as those younger than 50 years. We defined hemodynamic dysfunction (HD) as failure to achieve hemodynamic objectives despite the use of inotropic agents by protocol or upon diagnosing VD.

RESULTS

Among 246 BD subjects were 100 potential heart donors. Of these, 75 were transformed into real donors (RD) including 13 heart RD and 62 noncardiac RD. The conversion rate of BD subjects younger than 50 years to heart RD was 17%. When we analyzed the medical reasons for exclusion of the 62 donors who were not converted to heart RD, we observed that HD was the major cause (34%). When we analyzed the causes for exclusion related to cause of death, cranial trauma predominated (52%; P = .01; relative risk 3.5; 95% confidence interval 1.4-8.5).

CONCLUSION

Hemodynamic dysfunction represented the major cause for loss of heart donors; it was associated with younger patients with cranial trauma.

Brain death and its implications for management of the potential organ donor

The systemic physiologic changes that occur during and after brain death affect all organs suitable for transplantation. Major changes occur in the cardiovascular, pulmonary, endocrine, and immunological systems, and, if untreated may soon result in cardiovascular collapse and somatic death. Understanding these complex physiologic changes is mandatory for developing effective strategies for donor resuscitation and management in such a way that the functional integrity of potentially transplantable organs is maintained. This review elucidates these physiological changes and their consequences, and based on these consequences the rationale behind current medical management of brain-dead organ donors is discussed.

Effect of adenosine monophosphate deaminase-1 C34T allele on the requirement for donor inotropic support and on the incidence of early graft dysfunction after cardiac transplantation

The C34T T allele of the adenosine monophosphate deaminase-1 (AMPD1) gene has been associated with improved outcome in patients with cardiac dysfunction. We hypothesized that possession of this allele by donor hearts plays a role in the outcome of cardiac transplantation; 262 cardiac donors and 190 of their recipients were studied. AMPD1 C34T genotype was determined using 5' exonuclease chemistry. Requirement for inotropic agents before organ donation, 1-year post-transplantation survival, cause of death, and factors known to affect survival after transplantation were also studied. Multiple regression models for factors affecting survival were constructed. A significant yearly increase in frequency of the T allele in donors was noted (0.06 to 0.18 from 1994 to 1999). Donors with the CT or TT genotype required less inotropic support than those with the CC genotype (mean number of inotropes per donor with CT or TT genotype 0.27 compared with 0.47 per donor with CC genotype, n = 206, p = 0.03). Recipients of T-allele-carrying organs showed worse 1-year survival after transplantation (59% vs 79%, p <0.001). Excess deaths in these patients was due to early graft dysfunction (odds ratio for early graft dysfunction 6.6, 95% confidence interval 2 to 21.6, p = 0.0001). Multivariate analysis showed donor AMPD1 genotype, recipient age, and pretransplantation anemia to independently affect 1-year post-transplantation survival (adjusted hazard ratios 3.7, 1.06, and 2.6, respectively). In conclusion, possession of the AMPD1 T allele is associated with decreased inotropic requirements before heart donation. The incidence of early graft dysfunction, however, was significantly higher in recipients who received AMPD1 T-allele-possessing organs resulting in worse 1-year survival.