title: The incidence of potential missed organ donors in intensive care units and emergency rooms: a retrospective cohort.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  There is a shortage of organ donors in Canada. The number of potential organ donors that are not referred to organ procurement organizations in Canada is unknown.
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted a retrospective cohort study of all deaths in ICUs and emergency rooms not referred to the Human Organ Procurement and Exchange Program in four hospitals between 1 January 2008 and 31 December 2010. The primary outcome was the number of normal and expanded criteria heart-beating donors and circulatory death (DCD) donors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of 2,931 deaths, 64 patients were identified as having a high probability for progression to heart-beating donation (Glasgow Coma Score of 3 and three or more absent brainstem reflexes) and 130 patients were assessed for possible DCD donation. The number of potential abdominal and lung heart-beating donors ranged from 3.2 to 7.5 and 0.5 to 2.7 per million population. The number of potential DCD abdominal and lung donors ranged from 3.9 to 6.5 and 2.7 to 4.3 per million population. Potential heart-beating abdominal (p = 0.04) and lung (p = 0.06) donors increased after legislation mandating donation discussion. Non-pupillary brainstem reflexes were documented in fewer than 60 % of records. Life-sustaining treatment was withdrawn in 19 of 46 (41.3 %) cardiac arrest patients not requiring high doses of vasoactive drugs within 24 h.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The number of heart-beating or DCD organ donors represented by missed referrals may represent up to 7.5 donors per million population. Improved documentation of brainstem reflexes and encouraging referral of patients suffering cardiac arrest to ICU specialists may improve donor numbers.
authors.affiliation: Division of Critical Care Medicine, The Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, The University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada. jim.kutsogiannis@ualberta.ca
authors.forename: Demetrios J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Kutsogiannis
authors.forename: Sonal
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Asthana
authors.forename: Derek R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Townsend
authors.forename: Gurmeet
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.forename: Constantine J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Karvellas
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007362:Intensive Care Units; D016030:Kidney Transplantation; D016031:Liver Transplantation; D016040:Lung Transplantation; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014019:Tissue Donors / Q000600:supply & distribution*; D009927:Tissue and Organ Procurement / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult