National Trends in Heart Donor Usage Rates: Are We Efficiently Transplanting More Hearts?

Background It is unclear whether the recent increase in the number of heart transplants performed annually in the United States is only because of higher availability of donors and if it affected recipients' survival. Methods and Results We examined characteristics of donors and recipients from 2008 to 2012 (n=11 654) and 2013 to 2017 (n=14 556) and compared them with 2003 to 2007 (n=10 869). Cox models examined 30-day and 1-year risk of recipients' death post transplant. From 2013 to 2017, there was an increase in the number of transplanted hearts and number of donor offers but an overall decline in the ratio of hearts transplanted to available donors. Donors between 2013 and 2017 were older, heavier, more hypertensive, diabetic, and likely to have abused illicit drugs compared with previous years. Drug overdose and hepatitis C positive donors were additional contributors to donor risk in recent years. In Cox models, risk of death post transplant between 2013 and 2017 was 15% lower at 30 days (hazard ratio [HR] 0.85; 95% CI, 0.74-0.98) and 21% lower at 1 year (HR, 0.79; 95% CI, 0.73-0.87) and between 2008 and 2012 was 9% lower at 30 days (HR, 0.91; 95% CI, 0.79-1.05) and 14% lower at 1 year (HR, 0.86; 95% CI, 0.79-0.94) compared with 2003 to 2007. Conclusions Despite a substantial increase in heart donor offers in recent years, the ratio of transplants performed to available donors has decreased. Even though hearts from donors who are older, more hypertensive, and have diabetes mellitus are being used, overall recipient survival continues to improve. Broader acceptance of drug overdose and hepatitis C positive donors may increase the number and percentage of heart transplants further without jeopardizing short-term outcomes.