Exploring Bioethics - NIH Office of Science Education - National ...

Scientific QuestionWhat must a patient do after atransplant to help the new liverwork?What is the survival rate forpatients who receive a liverfrom a deceased donor?What is cold ischemic time?Why is cold ischemic timeimportant?AnswerTo keep the body from rejecting the new liver, the patient must takeimmunosuppressant medicines. One of the side effects of a weakenedimmune system, though, is getting more infections and illnesses. Doctorswork to find the right dosage: enough medicine to help prevent rejectionbut not so much that the person’s immune system is overly compromised.Sex 1 year 3 years 5 yearsMales 86.7% 78.4% 71.9%Females 86.1% 78.3% 73.1%The time between when an organ has been removed from a donor andwhen it is transplanted into a recipient.The shorter the amount of time an organ is not in a body, the better thechance of a successful transplant. For livers, the medically acceptable limitfor cold ischemic time is 12 hours.*All transplant statistics are from U.S. data only.Selected sources: Hepatitis B Foundation. 2007. Your liver and how it works. Retrieved December 22, 2008, from http://www.hepb.org/pdf/the_liver.pdf. National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse. 2003. What I need to know about livertransplantation. Retrieved December 22, 2008, from http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/livertransplant_ez/. OrganProcurement and Transplantation Network, and Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients. 2009. OPTN/SRTR Annual ReportTables 1.3, 1.6, 1.7. Retrieved April 30, 2009, from http://www.ustransplant.org/csr/current/FastFacts/datatour.aspx?s=1.Copyright © 2009 Education Development Center, Inc. Exploring Bioethics.Permission granted for classroom use.Master 3.5 (Page 2 of 2)