COVID-19: A global transplant perspective on successfully navigating a pandemic

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Authors: Deepali Kumar ; Oriol Manuel ; Yoichiro Natori ; Hiroto Egawa ; Paolo Grossi ; Sang-Hoon Han ; Mario Fernández-Ruiz ; Atul Humar

Citation: AMERICAN JOURNAL OF TRANSPLANTATION, Vol.20(7) : 1773-1779, 2020-07

MeSH: Betacoronavirus ; Coronavirus Infections / complications* ; Coronavirus Infections / prevention & control* ; Decision Making ; Donor Selection ; Global Health ; Humans ; Infectious Disease Medicine / organization & administration ; Organ Transplantation / trends* ; Pandemics / prevention & control* ; Pneumonia, Viral / complications* ; Pneumonia, Viral / prevention & control* ; Tissue Donors ; Tissue and Organ Procurement / standards ; Transplants ; Vulnerable Populations

Keywords: clinical decision-making ; clinical research/practice ; donors and donation ; donor-derived infections ; infection and infectious agents - viral ; infectious disease ; organ transplantation in general

Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has rapidly evolved and changed our way of life in an unprecedented manner. The emergence of COVID-19 has impacted transplantation worldwide. The impact has not been just restricted to issues pertaining to donors or recipients, but also health-care resource utilization as the intensity of cases in certain jurisdictions exceeds available capacity. Here we provide a personal viewpoint representing different jurisdictions from around the world in order to outline the impact of the current COVID-19 pandemic on organ transplantation. Based on our collective experience, we discuss mitigation strategies such as donor screening, resource planning, and a staged approach to transplant volume considerations as local resource issues demand. We also discuss issues related to transplant-related research during the pandemic, the role of transplant infectious diseases, and the influence of transplant societies for education and disseminating current information.