First Report of the Korean Lung Transplantation Registry

The Korean Organ Transplantation Registry (KOTRY) began to register lung transplants in 2015. This is an initial report on the status of patients receiving lung transplants over the past 2 years.

We analyzed a total of 69 patients who received lung transplants in 2015 and 2016 and who registered with the KOTRY.

The 69 patients were treated in 5 institutions. The average (SD) donor age was 39.2 (12.6) years; there were 40 male patients. The average (SD) recipient age was 55.7 (10.0) years, and the number of male recipients was 46. A total of 66 patients underwent bilateral lung transplantation, 3 underwent single-lung transplantation, and 1 underwent simultaneous heart-lung transplantation. The most frequent indication for lung transplantation was idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (35 patients), followed by connective tissue disease-related interstitial lung disease (9) and acute respiratory failure (8). Prior to transplantation, 23 patients required ventilator care, and 12 required extracorporeal membrane oxygenation while on the waiting list. Episodes of acute rejection during follow-up were reported in 4, 2, 1, and 1 patients at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months, respectively. Infections requiring hospitalization were reported in 27, 10, 4, and 3 patients at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months, respectively.

The establishment of KOTRY renders it possible to collect nationwide data on lung transplantation, improving research on the topic and clarifying clinical feasibility.