Organ donation for transplantation: a clinical studie with emphasis on liver donation.

The central theme of this thesis was the continuing organ shortage. Several factors have been held responsible for this shortage, including refusal of permission for organ donation by the next-of-kin, insufficient recognition of potential organ donors by the medical staff, and -unjustified- discard of donors by transplant teams either due to logistic reasons or because of medical reasons. Apart from the logistic reasons, we have explored these different causes for organ shortage. With respect to the problem of medical discard we have focused on the liver, because transplantation of a viable liver graft is an important prereguisite for patient survival due to the lack of extracorporeal liver support. In this chapter we will summarize and discuss the findings of the studies in the previous chapters. Finally, recommendations for the future are given. ... Zie: Summary