Facts About Organ Donation and Transplantation

Donating your organs after your death can give another person with diseased or failing organs the chance to lead a full life. There is no age limit on organ donation; if the tissue types match and the organs are in good condition, a transplant can take place. Patients who receive a transplant have a greater than 60% survival rate, depending on the organ that is donated.

Organ and Tissues Suitable for Transplant

• The organs and tissues that can be donated to another human being include the corneas, skin, bone, heart, lungs, intestines, liver, kidney, pancreas, tendons, heart valves, bone marrow, the femoral arteries and saphenous veins in the thighs.

Donor Types

• Depending on what tissue is donated, donors may be living or on the verge of death. A kidney, a portion of the liver, skin or bone marrow can be harvested from living donors. Other tissues, such as hearts and lungs, are removed from dying or deceased donors who previously signed a Uniform Donor Card and whose families have signed consent forms releasing the organs for donation.

Donor Age

• Organ donors can be as young as a newborn baby or as old as a senior citizen, as long as the tissues are in good condition.

Preservation of Organs

• After the donated organ is removed from the host, it typically has a short shelf life before it becomes unusable. Hearts and lungs need to be installed within five hours, livers within 18 hours, pancreas within 20 hours, kidneys within three days, corneas within 10 days and within five years or more for heart valves, skin and bones.

Transplant Survival Rates

• Survival rates for those receiving an organ donation are well above 50%, the lowest being 69.6% for an intestinal transplant and the highest being a kidney transplant from a living donor, at 97.7%. The high survival rates of transplant recipients can be credited to improved anti-rejection drugs, according to the Congressional Kidney Caucus.