Ex Vivo Lung Perfusion – State of the Art in Lung Donor Pool Expansion
Aron-Frederik Popov, Anton Sabashnikov, Nikhil P. Patil, Mohamed Zeriouh, Prashant N. Mohite, Bartlomiej Zych, Diana Garcia Saez, Bastian Schmack, Arjang Ruhparwar, Pascal M. Dohmen, Matthias Karck, Andre R. Simon, Alexander Weymann
Department of Cardiothoracic Transplantation & Mechanical Circulatory Support, Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom
Med Sci Monit Basic Res 2015; 21:9-14
DOI: 10.12659/MSMBR.893674
Available online: 2015-02-03
Published: 2015-02-03
Abstract:
Lung transplantation remains the gold standard for patients with end-stage lung disease. Nevertheless, the number of suitable donor lungs for the increasing number of patients on the waiting list necessitates alternative tools to expand the lung donor pool. Modern preservation and lung assessment techniques could contribute to improved function in previously rejected lungs.
Ex vivo lung perfusion (EVLP) already demonstrated its value in identification of transplantable grafts from the higher risk donor pool. Moreover, lungs from EVLP did not show significantly different postoperative results compared to standard criteria lungs. This could be explained by the reduction of the ischemia-reperfusion injury through EVLP application.
The aim of this article is to review technical characteristics and the growing clinical EVLP experience with special attention to EVLP application for donation after cardiac death (DCD) lungs.
Keywords: Lung - physiology, Lung Transplantation - methods, Organ Preservation - methods, Perfusion - methods
