Preanalytical variables influencing the interpretation and reporting of biological tests on blood samples of living and deceased donors for human body materials.

With the present paper, the Working Group on Cells, Tissues and Organs and other experts of the Superior Health Council of Belgium aimed to provide stakeholders in material of human origin with advice on critical aspects of serological and nucleic acid test (NAT) testing, to improve virological safety of cell- and tissue and organ donation. The current paper focusses on a number of preanalytical variables which can be critical for any medical biology examination: (1) sampling related variables (type of samples, collection of the samples, volume of the sample, choice of specific tubes, identification of tubes), (2) variables related to transport, storage and processing of blood samples (transport, centrifugation and haemolysis, storage before and after centrifugation, use of serum versus plasma), (3) variables related to dilution (haemodilution, pooling of samples), and (4) test dependent variables (available tests and validation). Depending on the type of donor (deceased donor (heart-beating or non-heart beating) versus living donor (allogeneic, related, autologous), and the type of donated human material (cells, tissue or organs) additional factors can play a role: pre- and post-mortem sampling, conditions of sampling (e.g. morgue), haemodilution, possibility of retesting.

Facial Allograft Donation: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of the Experiences of Family Members.

Facial allograft transplantation can be regarded as a particular and complex type of donation because of its perceptibility and the importance of the face as an identity characteristic. As research on this topic is currently lacking, the objective of this study is to explore the experiences of the family members of the donor in facial allograft donation. In-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted separately with the donor's family members and analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Six themes were identified: (1) Contrasting facial donation to that of more commonly donated organs; (2) Consenting to facial donation; (3) Expectations towards the recipient of the facial graft; (4) Expectations and consequences of restoration of the donor's face; (5) Relationship with the medical team during the process; and (6) Media attention. The findings of our study help to better support donor families through the facial donation process and to improve facial transplantation procedures.

Access of non-residents to transplantation of deceased donor organs: practices and strategies in the European setting.

The access of non-resident patients to the deceased donor waiting list (DDWL) poses different challenges. The European Committee on Organ Transplantation of the Council of Europe (CD-P-TO) has studied this phenomenon in the European setting. A questionnaire was circulated among the Council of Europe member states to inquire about the criteria applied for non-residents to access their DDWL. Information was compiled from 28 countries. Less than 1% of recipients of deceased donor organs were non-residents. Two countries never allow non-residents to access the DDWL, four allow access without restrictions and 22 only under specific conditions. Of those, most give access to non-resident patients already in their jurisdictions who are in a situation of vulnerability (urgent life-threatening conditions). In addition, patients may be given access: (i) after assessment by a specific committee (four countries); (ii) within the framework of official cooperation agreements (15 countries); and (iii) after patients have officially lived in the country for a minimum length of time (eight countries). The ethical and legal implications of these policies are discussed. Countries should collect accurate information about residency status of waitlisted patients. Transparent criteria for the access of non-residents to DDWL should be clearly defined at national level.

Donation after circulatory death today: an updated overview of the European landscape.

Donation after circulatory death (DCD) has become an accepted practice in many countries and remains a focus of intense interest in the transplant community. The present study is aimed at providing a description of the current situation of DCD in European countries. Specific questionnaires were developed to compile information on DCD practices, activities and post-transplant outcomes. Thirty-five countries completed the survey. DCD is practiced in 18 countries: eight have both controlled DCD (cDCD) and uncontrolled DCD (uDCD) programs, 4 only cDCD and 6 only uDCD. All these countries have legally binding and/or nonbinding texts to regulate the practice of DCD. The no-touch period ranges from 5 to 30 min. There are variations in ante and post mortem interventions used for the practice of cDCD. During 2008-2016, the highest DCD activity was described in the United Kingdom, Spain, Russia, the Netherlands, Belgium and France. Data on post-transplant outcomes of patients who receive DCD donor kidneys show better results with grafts obtained from cDCD versus uDCD donors. In conclusion, DCD is becoming increasingly accepted and performed in Europe, importantly contributing to the number of organs available and providing acceptable post-transplantation outcomes.

The choice between deceased- vs living-donor renal transplantation in children: Analysis of data from a Belgian tertiary center.

Pediatric renal transplantation with a living donor (LD) has superior outcome, but there is a paucity of studies analyzing the reasons for not undertaking living donation in West-European countries. The aim of this study was to retrospectively review the choice of donor source in our center. We also aimed to identify factors which prevented transplantation with a LD. This retrospective study was performed including children aged 2-19 years who underwent kidney transplantation (KT) at the Ghent University Hospital between 1996 and 2016. Relevant data were collected from medical files to identify the main medical, psychological, and socio-economic factors influencing the choice of the donor source. There were 48 patients (boys n = 33) who underwent KT. Thirty-nine patients received a deceased donor (DD) kidney and nine patients received a LD kidney. Sixteen of 48 transplantations were preemptive. The reasons for DD KT included socio-economic factors such as single caregiver families, one or both parents with a criminal record or convictions and religious or cultural constraints (n = 15), medical considerations (n = 13), refusal of the close relatives/parents to donate (n = 7), and acceptance of an organ from a DD while prospective donor was undergoing medical screening (n = 4). The low incidence of living kidney donation can be explained by socio-economic and medical factors. Refusal to donate is a potentially modifiable factor and strategies aimed at education and guidance of the families might contribute to a higher incidence of living donation in our setting.

Complex facial reconstruction by vascularized composite allotransplantation: the first Belgian case.

INTRODUCTION: Complex injuries to the central part of the face are difficult to reconstruct with the current plastic surgery methods. The ultimate one-staged approach to restore anatomy and vital facial functions is to perform a vascularized composite allotransplantation (VCA). METHODS: A 54-year-old man suffered from a high-energy ballistic injury, resulting in a large central facial defect. A temporary reconstruction was performed with a free plicated anterolateral thigh (ALT) flap. Considering the goal to optimally restore facial function and aesthetics, VCA was considered as an option for facial reconstruction. A multidisciplinary team approach, digital planning, and cadaver sessions preceded the transplantation. RESULTS: A digitally planned facial VCA was performed involving the bilateral maxillae, the hard palate, a part of the left mandible, and the soft tissues of the lower two-thirds of the face. Due to meticulous preparations, minimal adjustments were necessary to achieve good fitting in the recipient. At week 17, a grade 4 rejection was successfully treated; sensory and motor recovery was noted to occur from the fourth postoperative month. Several serious infectious and medical problems have occurred until 15-months postoperatively; following that, the clinical situation has remained stable. Two years postoperatively, the patient and his family are very satisfied with the overall outcome and social reintegration in the community is successful. CONCLUSION: The first face transplant in Belgium (#19 worldwide) was successful because of a meticulous 3-year preparation by a large multidisciplinary team. In our experience, preparatory cadaver dissections and three-dimensional (3D) computed tomographic (CT) modeling were valuable tools for an optimal intraoperative course and good alignment of the bony structures. Continuous long-term multidisciplinary follow-up is mandatory for surveillance of the complications associated with the immunosuppressive regime and for functional assessment of the graft.

Split liver transplantation with extended right grafts under patient-oriented allocation policy. Single center matched-pair outcome analysis.

BACKGROUND: Split liver transplantation (SLT) is an established technique developed to optimize the number of available grafts. Few data are available on SLT with extended right liver grafts (eRLG) in the context of patient-oriented allocation policy. METHODS: Between July 1, 2001 and December 31, 2005, 12 whole liver graft (WLG) recipients were matched with 12 eRLG recipients according to their clinical status, indication and year of liver transplantation. RESULTS: There were no differences according to recipient Model for End-stage Liver Disease score, total serum bilirubin, creatinine levels and international normalized ratio in both groups. Fifty percent of donors in eRLG group presented 2 or more extended criteria. Liver transplantation was performed in UNOS status 1/2A in 58% of cases in both groups. Vascular and biliary complications were observed in three patients in the eRLG group. The median follow-up was 25.3 months (range 0.4-63). Early mortality (