A 360° Rotational Positioning Protocol of Organ Donors May Increase Lungs Available for Transplantation*

Objectives: To evaluate the improvement in lung donation and immediate lung function after the implementation of a 360° rotational positioning protocol within an organ procurement organization in the Midwest. Design: Retrospective observational study. Setting: The Midwest Transplant Network from 2005 to 2017. Rotational positioning of donors began in 2008. Subjects: Potential deceased lung donors. Interventions: A 360° rotational protocol. Presence of immediate lung function in recipients, change in Pao2:Fio2 ratio during donor management, initial and final Pao2:Fio2 ratio, and proportion of lungs donated were measured. Outcomes were compared between rotated and nonrotated donors. Measurements and Main Results: A total of 693 donors were analyzed. The proportion of lung donations increased by 10%. The difference between initial Pao2:Fio2 ratio and final Pao2:Fio2 ratio was significantly different between rotated and nonrotated donors (36 ± 116 vs 104 ± 148; p
Source: Critical Care Medicine - Category: Emergency Medicine Tags: Clinical Investigations Source Type: research