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Survey of cadaveric donors to a body donation program: 1978-1993
D E Dluzen1, C M Brammer, J C Bernard
1Department of Anatomy, Northeastern Ohio Universities, College of Medicine, Rootstown 44272-0095, USA.
Insights
Body donation programs primarily receive donors who are male, white, and elderly, often with cardiovascular or cancer-related deaths. Decisions to donate are typically made near the time of death, not long-term.
Area of Science:
- Anatomy
- Medical Education
- Demographics
Background:
- Understanding donor demographics is crucial for medical education and research.
- Historical data from body donation programs can reveal trends and potential biases.
Purpose of the Study:
- To profile characteristics of body donors from 1978-1993.
- To identify demographic representation and potential disparities in the donor pool.
- To inform future recruitment strategies for body donation programs.
Main Methods:
- Review of body donation files from Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine (1978-1993).
- Data compilation into a computerized database for analysis.
- Evaluation of donor characteristics including gender, race, age, cause of death, marital status, and education.
Main Results:
- Donors were predominantly male (58%) and white (98%), with an average age at death of 73.
- Cardiovascular disease (46%), cancer (27%), and pulmonary dysfunction (16%) were leading causes of death.
- Donors had an average of 12.5 years of education, with nearly half being married.
Conclusions:
- Donor characteristics reflect the general population but also show unique attributes, such as gender and educational attainment.
- Increasing female participation was observed in later years.
- Donations were typically arranged near the time of death, suggesting a lack of long-term planning.
Abstract:
Body donation files from the Department of Anatomy at Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine were reviewed from the 569 donors used in our program from 1978-1993. The data were entered into a computerized database to evaluate the characteristics of people who have contributed to the body donation program for cadaveric dissection. The purpose of this review was to reveal a profile of the people who have contributed to our program and enable us to identify any deficiencies or disproportionate representation of donors which can be used when targeting future applicants. Donors to our program were predominantly male (58%), although there was a clear trend for increasing numbers of females over the latter period of the program. Donors were almost exclusively white (98%) with an average age at death of 73 years (range 18-98 years). The combination cardiovascular (46%), cancer (27%), and pulmonary dysfunction (16%) accounted for nearly all deaths of our donors. Approximately half of the donors (49%) were married and they completed an average of 12.5 years of education. The typical donor bequested at, or near, the time of death. From these data we conclude that certain characteristics of our donors can be primarily attributable to the population base of our sample. Other characteristics, for example, gender, age at death of females, and educational level, show marked departures from population values and suggest some unique attributes of our donors. Bequests to our body donation program do not appear to represent a long-term plan, but rather a decision made just prior to death.