Organ Transplantation in Turkey: Experience of Organ Transportation by Airway

Abstract

Transplantation is a multidisciplinary treatment that covers all procedures that allow live cells or tissues to be transferred from donor to recipient and live in recipient to function. Transplantation network is not only innovative technological techniques that reduce damage to organs due to ischemia time, a complex system of activities that standardization process must take into account more variables. In our study, in organ transplants performed between January 2017 and December 2019, the transport system of organs organized by the Ministry of Health was examined. In this period, 208 organs were transferred, 172 of which were by airplane ambulance and 36 by ambulance helicopter. Within the transported organs; the liver was in the first place as a total of 76 organs, 61 of which were transferred by plane and 15 by helicopter. The heart was in second place as a total of 75 organs, 63 of which were transferred by plane and 12 by helicopter. The lung was in third place as a total of 42 organs, 38 of which were transferred by plane and 4 by helicopter. Considering the flight times, for organ transfer , the average flight time was 77 minutes by plane, and the average flight time was 102 minutes by helicopter. The cold ischemia period, which begins with removal of organ from patient and put it in protective fluids, is most important criteria for organ transplant success. Considering that acceptable cold ischemia time for lungs 4 hours, heart 4 hours, kidney 18 hours and liver 11 hours, we think that average transport times by air transport contribute in success of organ transplants. When the data were analyzed in our study, it is seen that many organs have been successfully transferred with convenient flight times to transplant centers in different regions.