Breakthrough in liver transplants: New technology revolutionizes organ donation!

Breakthrough in liver transplants: New technology revolutionizes organ donation!

The Alexander Karl Foundation has funded a research project by the University Medical Center Mainz with 300,000 euros for organization solutions for liver transplants. This project aims to clinically establish the machine perfusion, an innovative technology for the preservation of donor organs. This method could be a solution for the continued scarcity of suitable donor organs in Germany, which is increasingly caused by older and sick donors. While the conventional method of cooling in ice is not sufficient to supply the organs sufficiently oxygen, the machine perfusion enables better supply of the organs with an oxygen -enriched solution during the period between withdrawal and transplantation.

As part of the project, the University Medical Center Mainz plans to participate in a Germany -wide clinical study on machine perfusion. This study will compare various methods of machine perfusion with conventional preservation and deal with central research questions, including preventing circulatory disorders and generating additional information about the quality and suitability of organs. In the long term, the project aims to increase the chances of success of the transplants and thus optimally use the potential of the machine perfusion.

The persistent scarcity of donor organs and the increasing number of patients on waiting lists for transplants increase the interest in better preserving options such as the ex Vivo machine perfusion (MP). This technology enables the functionality of the organs to maintain over the longer period and to assess the suitability of the donor organs before the transplant. According to Doccheck , the machine perfusion shows significant advantages compared to the classic cold storage (Static cold storage, SCS), especially with regard to the avoidance Organ damage.

There are different types of machine perfusion, including hypothermic and normothermic procedures. Hypothermic perfusion (HMP) aims to keep the temperature between 4 ° C and 12 ° C, which prevents organ damage. This technology has already been recognized as effective and could be used more and more in future studies. Normothermal perfusion (NMP), which takes place at body temperature, receives the metabolic activity of the organ and could significantly improve the transplant results.

outlook for the future

An overview study from 2020 shows that machine perfusion, especially HMP, achieves superior results in liver transplants. However, the implementation of machine perfusion in the euro transplant room is currently still limited. A study from August 2024 has stimulated the discussion about how limited number of randomized controlled studies on organization -resistant studies influence research and shows the potential for significant expansion of the donor pool, in particular in Germany. The machine perfusion can not only improve organ solving, but also serve as a platform for specific therapies on isolated organs.

Overall, developments in machine perfusion represent a promising progress in transplant medicine.