The impact of television on attitudes towards organ donation--a survey in a German urban population sample. (65/3426)

BACKGROUND: The stagnation or decrease in organ donation rates since 1992 in Germany has partly been attributed to the negative impact of reports about organ donation periodically presented by German television between 1992 and 1997. This study was performed to elucidate the impact of the media on the public's attitudes towards organ donation. METHODS: A questionnaire concerning different aspects of organ donation was sent to the parents of pupils of a high school in a German city in 1994 and 1998. RESULTS: In 1994, 940 adults could be identified who had (TV+, n = 546) or had not (TV-, n = 394) followed at least one television discussion about the topic. In 1998, the group consisted of 756 (TV+, n = 443 and TV-, n = 313) adults. The discriminating question was of sufficient strength to reveal significant differences between TV(+) and TV(-) respondents. Contrary to an assumed negative impact of TV, differences between the groups were detectable mainly in questions regarding information, but not in those which dealt with personal fears and concerns. The main results obtained in both surveys were identical. Furthermore, from 1994 to 1998 there was a trend in favour of information and organ donation for TV(+) but not for TV(-) respondents. CONCLUSION: The assumption that TV has had a negative impact on donation rates must be rejected. Therefore, the stagnation/decline in donation rates must be attributed to other factors.  (+info)

Graft-versus-tumor induction with donor leukocyte infusions as primary therapy for patients with malignancies. (66/3426)

PURPOSE: Histocompatible allogeneic donor leukocyte infusions (DLIs) were administered as primary cancer therapy in a phase I trial to determine (1) whether mixed chimerism could be detected without a prior allogeneic transplantation, (2) the toxicity of primary DLI, and (3) whether a graft-versus-tumor (GVT) reaction could be observed. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Eighteen patients were studied. Patients received interferon alfa-2b for a minimum of 4 weeks, followed by DLI (level 1). Patients with no toxicity or engraftment were eligible to receive cytarabine or cyclophosphamide followed by another course of DLI (level 2). Engraftment was determined using polymerase chain reaction amplification of donor and host-specific DNA polymorphisms. RESULTS: Donor cells were detected in the blood in 14 of 16 assessable patients within 1 hour of DLI. Chimerism detectable 4 weeks after DLI was observed in four patients, and five patients were not assessable. Prior autologous transplantation was associated with late chimerism (P =.0014). Acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) occurred in four of 16 assessable patients (grade 1, two patients; grade 2, one patient; grade 4, one patient). One patient with grade 4 acute GVHD developed pancytopenia. Only the four patients treated after prior autologous transplantation developed acute GVHD (P =.0005). Three of four patients with acute GVHD and late chimerism responded to primary DLI, and one patient was not assessable for response. CONCLUSION: Allogeneic adoptive immunotherapy resulted in sustained chimerism, acute GVHD, and a GVT response in heavily pretreated patients. This indicates that it may be possible to generate a direct GVT response for patients with malignancies without the need for intensive conditioning therapy immediately before DLI. Immunosuppression may be required for sustained donor cell engraftment.  (+info)

Vasopressin deficiency and pressor hypersensitivity in hemodynamically unstable organ donors. (67/3426)

BACKGROUND: Solid organ donors often develop hypotension due to vasodilation, and recently we observed that a variety of vasodilatory states are characterized by vasopressin deficiency and hypersensitivity. Thus, we investigated the prevalence of vasopressin deficiency in hypotensive solid organ donors without clinical evidence of diabetes insipidus; we also investigated the vasopressor effect of vasopressin replacement in hypotensive donors. METHODS AND RESULTS: Fifty organ donors were evaluated for hemodynamic instability, (mean arterial pressure [MAP]+info)

Early experience with dual kidney transplantation in adults using expanded donor criteria. Double Kidney Transplant Group (DKG). (68/3426)

Dual transplant of marginal kidneys otherwise not considered for single transplant may give access to an expanded pool of cadaveric organs without exposing recipients to the drawbacks of a limited nephron mass supply. This prospective, case-control study compares adverse events and graft outcome in 24 recipients of two marginal kidneys from donors who were >60 yr old or who had diabetes, hypertension, or non-nephrotic proteinuria (cases), with that of 48 age- and gender-matched control subjects who received single ideal grafts at the same center and were given the same immunosuppressive therapy. Marginal kidneys with no macroscopic abnormalities were selected for the double transplant on the basis of a predefined score of histologic damage. Six-month patient and kidney survival was 100% with both of the procedures. Incidence (20.8% versus 20.8%) and median (range) duration of posttransplant anuria (5 [2 to 12] versus 7 [2 to 13] days) were comparable in cases and control subjects, respectively. Time to normal serum creatinine and mean serum creatinine values at each time visit were comparable as well, but with significantly lower levels in cases compared with control subjects from month 2 to last follow-up (1.56 +/- 0.65 versus 1.74 +/- 0.73 mg/dl, P = 0.04). Diastolic BP values averaged during the entire posttransplant period were significantly lower in cases than in control subjects (83.2 +/- 11.5 versus 85.1 +/- 12.5 mmHg, respectively, P = 0.008). Donor/recipient body weight ratio was the only covariate significantly associated at univariate (P = 0.002) and multivariate (P = 0.001) analysis with last available serum creatinine concentrations. Incidence of acute allograft rejections (20.8% versus 18.8%) and of major surgical complications was comparable in the two groups. No renal artery or vein thrombosis was reported in either group. Dual transplants of marginal kidneys are as safe and tolerated as single transplants, and possibly offer an improved filtration power without exposing the recipient to enhanced risk of delayed renal function recovery, acute allograft rejection, or major surgical complications.  (+info)

Cross-Canada spread of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus via transplant organs. (69/3426)

We report our investigation of the transmission of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) through transplantation. The kidneys, liver, and corneas were harvested from a child who died in Nova Scotia. Several days postmortem it was learned that culture of a premortem endotracheal tube aspirate from the donor yielded MRSA. Both kidneys were transplanted into a child in Nova Scotia and the liver into a child in Alberta. Both recipients subsequently became blood culture-positive for MRSA. One corneal ring from the donor was MRSA-positive. All four MRSA isolates were mecA-positive by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The relatedness of the MRSA isolates was examined by restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis, a 16S-23S ribosomal PCR typing method, and comparison of antibiograms. Results were identical for all four MRSA isolates. These findings indicate that MRSA from the donor was transferred to recipients during implantation of harvested organs in Alberta and Nova Scotia, a cross-Canada spread.  (+info)

Brain death diagnosis in misleading conditions. (70/3426)

The necessity of defining brain death (BD) arose from technological development in medical science. The definition of this concept had practical consequences and opened the way to organ donation from BD patients. Nowadays, the imbalance between the number of organs available for transplantation and the size of the demand is becoming critical. In most laboratories, a BD diagnosis is made according to precise criteria and in a well-defined process. BD diagnosis should be improved, not only to assure the safety and to preserve the human dignity of the patient, but also in order to increase the rate of organ donation. By analysing some epidemiological parameters in BD diagnosis and organ donation, it appears that BD diagnoses can be made more often and more rapidly if one has a reliable, accurate, and safe confirmatory test, especially under misleading conditions (hypothermia, drugs, metabolic disturbances). In our experience, the use of multimodality evoked potentials (MEPs) to confirm a BD diagnosis has many advantages: MEPs can be rapidly performed at the patient's bedside, assess the brain stem as well as the cerebral cortex, and are innocuous for the patient. Moreover, their insensitivity to the aforementioned misleading factors is sufficient to distinguish BD from clinical and EEG states that mimic BD. They give an immediate diagnosis, and no delay is required in BD confirmation if there is sufficient cause to account for BD. MEPs are a safe, accurate, and reliable tool for confirming a BD diagnosis, and their use can improve the organ donation rate while preserving the safety of the patient.  (+info)

Posttransplant lymphoproliferative disorders in adult and pediatric renal transplant patients receiving tacrolimus-based immunosuppression. (71/3426)

Between March 27, 1989 and December 31, 1997, 1316 kidney transplantations alone were performed under tacrolimus-based immunosuppression at our center. Posttransplant lymphoproliferative disorders (PTLD) developed in 25 (1.9%) cases; the incidence in adults was 1.2% (15/1217), whereas in pediatric patients it was 10.1% (10/99; P<.0001). PTLD was diagnosed 21.0+/-22.5 months after transplantation, 25.0+/-24.7 months in adults and 14.4+/-18.2 months in pediatric patients. Of the 4 adult cases in whom both the donor and recipient Epstein Barr virus (EBV) serologies were known, 2 (50%) were seropositive donor --> seronegative recipient. Of 7 pediatric cases in whom both the donor and recipient EBV serologies were known, 6 (86%) were EBV seropositive donor --> seronegative recipient. Acute rejection was observed before the diagnosis of PTLD in 8 (53%) of 15 adults and 3 (30%) of 10 pediatric patients. Initial treatment of PTLD included a marked decrease or cessation of immunosuppression with concomitant ganciclovir therapy; two adults and two pediatric patients required chemotherapy. With a mean follow-up of 24.9+/-30.1 months after transplantation, the 1- and 5-year actuarial patient and graft survival rates in adults were 93% and 86%, and 80% and 60%, respectively. Two adults died, 3.7 and 46.2 months after transplantation, of complications related to PTLD, and 10 (including the 2 deaths) lost their allograft 3.7-84.7 months after transplantation. In children, the 1- and 5-year actuarial patient and graft survival rates were 100% and 100%, and 100% and 89%, respectively. No child died; one child lost his allograft 41.3 months after transplantation. One child had presumed recurrent PTLD that responded to discontinuation of tacrolimus and reinitiation of antiviral therapy. The mean serum creatinine level in adults was 2.5+/-1.2 mg/dl, and in children, it was 1.3+/-0.6 mg/ dl. Under tacrolimus-based immunosuppression, PTLD is less common after renal transplantation in adults than in children, but PTLD in children is associated with more favorable outcomes than in adults.  (+info)

Fatal herpesvirus-6 encephalitis in a recipient of a T-cell-depleted peripheral blood stem cell transplant from a 3-loci mismatched related donor. (72/3426)

Human herpesvirus-6 (HHV-6), like all the other herpes viruses, remains latent in host cells after primary infection but can be reactivated in immunocompromised patients causing fever, skin rash, bone marrow (BM) suppression, pneumonitis, sinusitis and meningoencephalitis. We describe the case of a man with chronic myelogenous leukemia who developed encephalitis associated with acute graft-versus-host disease two months after a T-cell-depleted mismatched peripheral blood stem cell transplant. Magnetic resonance images of the brain revealed multiple bilateral foci of signal abnormality. HHV-6 was the only pathogen detected in cerebrospinal fluid by PCR. Treatment with both ganciclovir and foscarnet was unsuccessful and the patient gradually deteriorated and died. Other cases of HHV-6 encephalitis after bone marrow transplantation are reviewed.  (+info)