donor

[do´ner]

1. a person or organism that supplies an organ or tissue to be used in another body, usually either a cadaveric, living related, or living unrelated donor; see transplantation.

2. a substance or compound that contributes part of itself to another substance (acceptor).

Algorithm for organ donation. From McQuillan, 2002.

cadaveric donor an organ or tissue donor who has already died; see cadaveric donor transplantation.

living nonrelated donor living unrelated donor.

living related donor one who is a close blood relative of the recipient; see living related donor transplantation.

living unrelated donor one who is not a close blood relative of the recipient; see living unrelated donor transplantation.

non–heart beating cadaveric donor a donor who has been pronounced dead according to the traditional criteria of lack of any pulse or detectable cardiac activity, but is not yet brain dead (see brain death). There are two types: The controlled donor is a person in a vegetative state who has signed a consent form or otherwise stated his or her wishes before becoming ill. Based on the patient's stated wishes and at the request of the next-of-kin, cannulas are placed into blood vessels for postmortem cooling of organs and the person is removed from life support. Once death has been declared, the organs are rapidly perfused with cold preservative solution and surgically removed. The uncontrolled donor is a person declared dead because of catastrophic injury to the heart, such as a gunshot wound to the heart. Cannulas are placed into blood vessels after death and the organs are perfused and removed. This also requires consent of next-of-kin.

universal donor a person whose blood is type O in the ABO blood group system; such blood is sometimes used in emergency transfusion. Transfusion of blood cells rather than whole blood is preferred.

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References in periodicals archive

For example, Feldstein (2003) discusses (in addition to the policies discussed in this paper) a policy of compensating cadaveric donors before death through lower insurance premiums for automobile insurance.

An evaluation of financial incentive policies for organ donations in the United States

The Sydney University Group needed the co-operation of other interested parties to find and provide the cadaveric donors across NSW to make it viable.

Early days in renal transplantation at Sydney Hospital 1967-1983

Even now, with the advances in medical technology and immunosuppression, live donation (again, especially for kidneys, but also for segments of liver, pancreata, lung, small bowel and in some exceptional cases even for heart (2)), is considered to be a better option than related transplant from cadaveric donors, with statistics indicating better recipient survival rates and better graft survival.

Ethical and legal aspects of unrelated living donors in Romania

The number of patients on waiting lists for organ transplants grows greater every year while the number of cadaveric donors has increased at a much slower rate.

Financial incentives for organ donation

Puzzlingly, some of the staunchest critics of using financial incentives for cadaveric donors have openly supported expanded use of living donor exchanges.

The Failure of U.S. Organ Procurement Policy: "how many deaths will it take 'til we know that too many people have died?"

"The supply of cadaveric donors is at best plateauing and at worse decreasing, which in some ways is a good thing because it means fewer people are dying in road accidents, which is how most organs become available," he said.

Living donors are heroes, says transplant surgeon

The first part deals with the Intensive Care Management of the Liver Transplant Recipient, factors involved with extended criteria cadaveric donors, acute liver failure and cardiovascular and coagulation issues in end-stage liver patients requiring transplantation.

International Anaesthesiology Clinics: An International View of Perioperative Issues in Liver Transplantation--Part II

First, suitable cadaveric donors must be identified in a timely fashion.

Inefficiency in cadaveric organ procurement

It can do the same for those who commit to being cadaveric donors.

New solution to the organ shortage: is there a simple and better incentive to increase organ donations?

Although the supply of cadaveric donors may never satisfy the demand for organs for transplantation, cadaveric donors will remain an important, if not the most important, supply of organs for the foreseeable future.

Potential organ-donor supply and efficiency of organ procurement organizations

According to OPTN data as of August 3, 2001, 5,984 cadaveric donors were recovered and more than 17,000 transplants from cadaveric donors were performed for the year 2000.

Presumed consent for organ procurement--does it have a future in the U.S.? (Ethical-Legal Perspectives)

American Medical Association, Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs, "Financial Incentives for Organ Procurement: Ethical Aspects of Future Contracts for Cadaveric Donors," Archives of Internal Medicine 155 (1995): 589-91.

Body values: the case against compensating for transplant organs