– CARM
The Rafael Méndez Hospital in Lorca has carried out the first donation in asystole since it began its transplant activity at the end of 2021.
So far this year, there have been two donations in this hospital in asystole (the first was performed at the Virgen de la Arrixaca hospital) and one in brain death. During 2022, three brain-death donations and two donations in asystole were carried out at the Virgen de la Arrixaca hospital.
This is the donation of organs and tissues from a person diagnosed as having died after confirmation of irreversible cessation of cardiorespiratory functions (absence of heartbeat and spontaneous breathing for more than five minutes).
This procedure is performed with the help of an extracorporeal oxygenation membrane, which was the first time it had been used for a donation at the Rafael Méndez. It is hoped that in the coming months, once the possibility of this procedure has been opened up, more extractions of this type can be carried out and thus contribute to increasing the donor activity of the Murcian Health Service (SMS).
In fact, the Virgen de la Arrixaca hospital continues to be the first centre in Spain with the highest number of cardiac transplants with donors in asystole, which represents 21 percent of the national experience.
ABOVE THE NATIONAL AVERAGE
The donation rate in the Region stands at 48.4 donors per million population, compared to the national average of 46.3. In addition, the Region of Murcia increased its transplant activity by 29 percent in 2022, reaching 419 in total, 122 more than in 2021 in a year in which the Region of Murcia achieved 79 organ donors.
In the first quarter of 2023, 25 kidney transplants, 16 liver transplants, five heart transplants and 30 cornea transplants have been achieved. In this period, 25 donors have been obtained in the Region, compared to 17 in 2021.
Last year 166 solid organ transplants were performed, 23 more than in 2021. Among them, kidney transplants stand out, with 90 cases, five more than in 2021 and 21 more than in 2020.
The transplant programme in the Region of Murcia stands out for being a pioneer in Covid-positive donation, since thanks to the first donor obtained, the national protocol was changed in 2021, and eight Covid-positive donors have been obtained so far.
It also stands out for being a pioneer in obtaining donors with malignant brain tumours (glioblastoma), with seven donors in 2022, which has allowed five liver transplants and one heart transplant.