Authors:
Sean P. Pinney, MD
Article First Paragraph:
Trust in an organ allocation system is predicated on fairness, a belief that organs will be directed to the most deserving patients first. To this end, the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network contractor, the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), created a system that prioritizes the allocation of hearts to patients with the highest likelihood of dying while waiting for a donor organ. Revised in 2006 to incorporate broader regional sharing, this allocation system has succeeded in directing hearts to a greater proportion of high-urgency patients (UNOS 1A) and in so doing reduced waiting list mortality without compromising post-transplant outcomes.
Source:
Journal of the American College of Cardiology, published online 25 April 2012