Variation in Pediatric Organ Donor Management Practices Among US Organ Procurement Organizations.

INTRODUCTION: Reports of actual pediatric organ donor management practice among US organ procurement organizations are sparse, and the use of standardized management guidelines is unknown. A recent consensus statement from the Society of Critical Care Medicine, the American College of Chest Physicians, and the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations offers guidelines for the management of the pediatric organ donor. RESEARCH QUESTION: To describe the use of guidelines and routine practices in the management of the pediatric organ donor with respect to hemodynamics, lung and ventilator management, fluid and electrolytes, hormonal replacement therapy, the use of blood products, thermoregulation, and prophylactic antibiotics. DESIGN: Cross-sectional observational study using a survey and follow-up telephone interview with respondents from all 58 US organ procurement organizations. RESULTS: All 58 US Organ Procurement Organizations participated. A majority employed written guidelines for the management of pediatric donor hemodynamics, thermoregulation, fluids, and electrolytes. Management of blood products, the lung, and mechanical ventilation were less commonly committed to written guidelines, but common practices were described. All used various forms of hormonal replacement therapy and the majority administered empiric antibiotic therapy. Wide variation was observed in the management of the lung, mechanical ventilation, and glycemic control. DISCUSSION: Most OPOs used forms of standardized donor management for the pediatric organ donor although variation in the content of that management exists. Barriers to an evidence-based approach to the pediatric donor need to be determined and addressed.

Survey of U.S. Organ Procurement Organizations Regarding Pediatric Organ Donor Management.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the current practice of pediatric organ donor management in the United States for donors declared dead based upon neurologic criteria. The study directs particular attention to how pediatric donors are defined, the use of donor management guidelines, the use of donor management goals, and the involvement of pediatric critical care or transplantation expertise. DESIGN: Cross-sectional observational study using a web-based survey and follow-up telephone interview with respondents from U.S. organ procurement organizations. The study also incorporated organ procurement organization-specific data on organ yield for the 4-year period (2010-2013) preceding the study. SETTING: The 58 U.S. organ procurement organizations. SUBJECTS: Respondents chosen by each organ procurement organization. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: All 58 U.S. organ procurement organizations participated in the study. Fifty-two respondents (90%) indicated that their organ procurement organization distinguished pediatric from adult donors resulting in 28 unique pediatric definitions. Thirty-nine organ procurement organizations utilized some form of written pediatric management guidelines, and 27 (47%) maintained pediatric donor management goals; compliance was infrequently monitored for both guidelines (28%) and goals (33%). A pediatric intensivist was always or usually involved in pediatric donor management at 47 organ procurement organizations (81%); transplant/organ recovery surgeons were always or usually involved at 12 organ procurement organizations (21%). There was an increase in the number of organs transplanted per donor among donors 11-17 years old for organ procurement organizations that used donor management goals for the duration of the period studied (p < 0.01). There was also an increase in the ratio of observed/expected organs transplanted among donors of 0-10 years old for organ procurement organizations that always or usually consulted a transplant/organ recovery surgeon (p = 0.02) although this did not reach our threshold for statistical significance.. CONCLUSIONS: There is little consensus among organ procurement organizations regarding the definition of "pediatric" during organ donor management. Most organ procurement organizations employ written pediatric guidelines and use pediatric intensive care physicians for assistance in managing these donors. There is a positive association between the use of donor management goals and organ yield among pediatric donors in the 11- to 17-year age group.

Whole Blood Thiamine in Organ Donors After the Neurologic Determination of Death.

INTRODUCTION: Metabolic resuscitation of organ donors and the attenuation of oxidative stress incurred by organs following brain death and transplantation have the potential to improve organ yield and allograft function. Thiamine (vitamin B1) is a vital coenzyme in both energy metabolism and the production of antioxidants that has not been studied in the donor population. RESEARCH AIM: To determine the frequency of subclinical thiamine deficiency in brain-dead organ donors and its correlation with demographics, length of hospitalization, donor management, lactic acidosis, and the requirement for vasoactive support. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study of brain-dead donors managed at a single organ procurement organization's organ recovery facility. RESULTS: A total 64 donors were enrolled; 24 donors had thiamine levels drawn upon arrival and 40 donors had levels drawn at the time of organ procurement. Whole blood thiamine levels were inversely correlated with the time from death (P = .007) and 20% (8/40) of donors had levels below the normal range at the time of organ procurement. Demographic features of the donor were not associated with thiamine levels although longer hospital stays prior to death were associated with lower levels (P < .05). The presence and resolution of lactic acidosis was not associated with whole blood thiamine level. Higher thiamine levels were associated with earlier discontinuation of vasoactive support (P = .04). DISCUSSION: Whole blood thiamine deficiency was not uncommon at the time of organ procurement. Thiamine may be associated with the requirement for hemodynamic support.

Pediatric Donor Management Goals in Use by US Organ Procurement Organizations.

INTRODUCTION: A recent study of pediatric organ donation after the neurologic determination of death (DNDD) demonstrated an association between the use of donor management goals (DMGs) by organ procurement organizations (OPOs) and organ yield. OBJECTIVE: To describe the pediatric DMGs used by OPOs and any association between specific DMGs and organ yield. DESIGN: Query of US OPOs who utilized DMGs in the care of pediatric DNDD organ donors from 2010 to 2013. RESULTS: All 23 OPOs using DMGs for pediatric DNDD organ donors during the study period participated (100%). The OPOs pursued an average 9.6 goals (standard deviation: 3.9; range: 5-22) with 113 unique definitions that targeted 33 aspects of donor hemodynamics, gas exchange/mechanical ventilation, electrolytes/renal function, blood products, thermoregulation, and infection control. The DMGs used by >50% of OPOs included blood pressure, oxygenation (partial pressure of arterial oxygen (PaO2), oxygen saturation of hemoglobin by pulse oximetry, or PaO2/fractional concentration of inspired oxygen [FiO2] ratio), pH, central venous pressure, serum sodium, urine output, limitations on inotropic support, and serum glucose. There was no significant correlation between the number of DMGs pursued by OPOs and organ yield. There was a difference in the observed/expected organs transplanted in the 0- to 10-year age-group for OPOs that included serum creatinine among their DMGs ( P = .046). CONCLUSIONS: The pediatric DMGs used by OPOs were generally measurable but diverse in definition and the number of goals pursued. There was no benefit in organ yield from larger DMG bundles. There may be a benefit in organ yield through the use of serum creatinine as a DMG in pediatric donors aged 0 to 10 years.

Association of nursing workload and unplanned extubations in a pediatric intensive care unit.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate nursing workload from the patient acuity level (PAL) assigned to patients in a pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) and to determine its influence on unplanned extubations. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: The 19-bed PICU of an urban, university-affiliated, tertiary children's hospital. PATIENTS: All patients admitted to the PICU. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The study encompassed 2,193 nursing shifts and 1,919 admissions to the PICU over 24 months. The shift census averaged 12.0 patients (range 5-18) and was staffed by 9.4 nurses (range 4-16) for an average patient/nurse ratio of 1.3 +/- 0.2. Patients were assigned a PAL of 1-7 based on a classification system derived from time studies of 12 general nursing tasks. The total PALs per shift divided by the number of nursing staff yielded an average assignment of 5.8 +/- 0.7 PALs. Forty unplanned extubations (0.76 unplanned extubations/100 ventilator days) were observed during the study period. Logistic regression revealed positive associations between unplanned extubations and patient/nurse ratio (p = .03) and the shift PAL/nurse ratio (p = .01). The likelihood of an unplanned extubation when nurses covered >6.3 PALs was 3.8 times higher than during those shifts when they covered <5.3 PALs. CONCLUSIONS: The likelihood of an unplanned extubation increased with higher patient/nurse and patient acuity/nurse ratios. Successful interventions to reduce the frequency of this medical error may need to address both nurse demand methodology and workload.

A procedure for placing pediatric femoral venous catheter tips near the right atrium.

OBJECTIVE: To find a body measurement that would serve as an index for determining the length of femoral venous catheter to be inserted to achieve a position near the right atrium. METHODS: A candidate index measurement was chosen, and radiographic measurements of routine femoral venous catheter placements were compared with the placement that may have resulted from use of the index in a group of patients. In a subsequent group, the candidate index was used to choose catheter insertion length, the accuracy of which was again evaluated from routine placement radiographs. RESULTS: The first series of radiographic measurements predicted that use of the sternal-umbilical-puncture (SUP) index would result in acceptable and accurate catheter tip placement. This was confirmed in the second group of patients in which 11 of 12 catheter tips were within 1 cm of the target position. CONCLUSIONS: The use of the SUP index ensures acceptable accuracy in estimating the required insertion length of femoral catheter when tip placement near the right atrium is the clinical goal.