Dual living donor organ transplants

Area of Science:

• Transplantation Medicine
• Surgical Innovation
• Donor Management

Background:

• Dual organ transplantation from living donors (LDs) is an infrequent procedure.
• Transplants can involve organs from a single LD or multiple LDs, performed simultaneously or sequentially.
• Simultaneous dual organ procurement from a single LD raises significant concerns due to procedural complexity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the scope and outcomes of dual organ transplants from living donors in the United States.
• To assess the safety and success rates of these complex transplant procedures.
• To identify trends and combinations in LD dual organ transplantation.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of data from the UNOS/OPTN and IPTR databases.
• Review of dual organ transplants performed between 1981 and 2021.
• Categorization of transplants by donor source (single vs. multiple LDs) and timing (simultaneous vs. sequential).

Main Results:

• A total of 212 LD dual organ transplants were identified: 101 from the same LD and 111 from different LDs.
• Pancreas-kidney transplants were the most common initial combination (n=92).
• Other combinations included liver-kidney, lung-kidney, liver-intestine, and intestine-kidney, with excellent recipient outcomes and no reported donor deaths.

Conclusions:

• Living donor dual organ transplantation is a safe and successful practice.
• Stringent evaluation protocols for potential dual organ donors are essential.
• Establishment of a dual organ donor registry is recommended for long-term follow-up.