Study of the Evolution of the Clinical Profile of Heart Donors

Certain characteristics of the donor have implications for the early and late survival of transplants. The trends show a progressive worsening in the clinical profile of heart donors. Our objective was to analyze changes in the clinical characteristics of donors. This retrospective study of 396 donors was divided into three periods: 1990 to 1994, 1995 to 1999, and 2000 to 2004. We excluded combination transplantations, retransplantations, and pediatric transplantations. The donor variables included age, cause of death, cardiorespiratory arrest, ICU stay, and ischemia time. Statistical analysis used ANOVA, Kruskall-Wallis, and Chi square test, with significance set at P < .05. Differences were found in age (1990–1994: 27 ± 1, 1995–1999: 29 ± 1, 2000– 2004: 34 ± 1 years; P = .0001), ischemia time (1990–1994: 119 ± 6, 1995–1999: 145 ± 4, 2000–2004: 156 ± 4 minutes; P = .0001), and death from brain hemorrhage (1990–1994: 28%, 1995–1999: 31%, 2000–2004: 43%; P = .031). There were differences in the clinical characteristics of the donors in the study periods. The age of the donor, stroke-related deaths, and ischemia time have increased significantly in recent years.