Role of Patient Factors and Practice Patterns in Determining Access to Liver Waitlist.
Geographic variability in access to care is a persistent challenge in transplantation. Little is known about how patients with end-stage liver disease are chosen for referral, evaluation and listing. Utilizing death certificate data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 2002 to 2009, estimated liver demand (ELD) was measured by aggregating annual deaths from liver disease and liver transplants performed in each donor service area (DSA). In DSAs with higher ELD, more patients per capita were listed for transplantation (p < 0.001). In addition, listing rates per ELD varied fivefold across DSAs, with more patients per ELD being transplanted in DSAs with higher listing rates (p < 0.001). After adjusting for liver donor risk index and MELD at transplant, there was no association between listing rate and posttransplant survival (HR 1.002, p = 0.77). In addition, DSAs with lower listing rates were more likely to export organs (p < 0.001) of lower liver donor risk index (p < 0.001). Listing sicker patients was associated with increased access to the waitlist and transplantation and more efficient organ utilization, but had minimal effect on posttransplant outcomes after adjusting for the resulting organ shortage.
Center for Surgery and Public Health, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA.|Division of Transplant Surgery, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA.
J T
JT
Adler
Division of Transplant Surgery, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA.
N
N
Dong
Division of Transplant Surgery, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA.|Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
J F
JF
Markmann
Department of Biostatistics, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA.
D
D
Schoenfeld
Division of Transplant Surgery, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA.|Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
H
H
Yeh
D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D016031:Liver Transplantation / Q000401:mortality / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008297:Male; D018579:Patient Selection; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'; D011379:Prognosis; D012307:Risk Factors; D015996:Survival Rate; D014019:Tissue Donors / Q000600:supply & distribution*; D009927:Tissue and Organ Procurement; D014850:Waiting Lists / Q000401:mortality*
Donors and donation: deceased; patient referral