title: Establishing an islet transplantation program in a developing country.
abstract: Diabetes is an emerging epidemic throughout the world. In our city alone, there are approximately 25,000 known diabetics (5% to 10% type 1) among a total population of 1.7 million inhabitants, and the incidence is increasing among all age groups. Islet transplantation is a potential treatment for type 1 diabetes mellitus. For this reason, we intended to establish an islet transplantation program. This required competent and well-trained professionals, a specially planned facility adhering to rigid regulations regarding safety and sterility, and a detailed study of the ethical laws and rules involving transplantation. In this article, we describe the process including any difficulties or barriers encountered due to limited resources in a developing country. We also describe all stages of personnel training and the necessary equipment and work area of a similar specialized center following the guidelines of the Brazilian National Agency for Health Care. Finally, we discuss our expectations for the initial phase of our islet transplantation program.
authors.affiliation: Human Islet Isolation Laboratory, Center for Biological and Health Sciences, Catholic University of Paraná, Curitiba, Brazil.
authors.forename: E D
authors.initials: ED
authors.lastname: Sotta
authors.forename: T M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Madalozzo
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Percegona
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pereira
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bignelli
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Senegaglia
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pecoits-Filho
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Riella
mesh_terms: D001938:Brazil; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D003906:Developing Countries; D006801:Humans; D016381:Islets of Langerhans Transplantation / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D009927:Tissue and Organ Procurement / Q000458:organization & administration; D014481:United States