title: Causes of failure to harvest cadaver kidneys for transplantation.
abstract: Fifty-two possible donors of cadaver kidneys were referred to the Nuffield Transplantation Surgery Unit, Edinburgh, in 12 months. Only 12 (23%) yielded kidneys, while a further 12 were medically unsuitable as donors. Refusal by relatives to allow cadaver nephrectomy was the largest avoidable loss of potentially transplantable kidneys. A similar but unavoidable loss occurred through sudden death of the possible donor.
mesh_terms: D002102:Cadaver; D005190:Family; D006801:Humans; D016030:Kidney Transplantation; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D012121:Respiration, Artificial; D014019:Tissue Donors; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous