for harvesting donated organs, nor is there disfigu-
ration of the donor’s body. Under US medical confi-
dentiality laws, the donor remains anonymous to
the recipient and the recipient remains anonymous
to the donor’s family.
Availability of donor organs remains the most
significant challenge for organ transplantation,
which has become the standard of care for END-
STAGE RENAL DISEASE (ESRD), end-stage HEART
FAILURE, and end-stage LIVER FAILURE. The need for
donor organs is about four times greater than the
availability. The US government maintains a Web
site (www.organdonor.gov) to provide informa-
tion updates about organ donation and a down-
loadable organ donor card. Another Web site
(www.transplantliving.org) provides comprehen-
sive information from OPTN/UNOS about the
entire organ transplantation process, from eligibil-
ity for transplantation to life after receiving a
transplant.
See also ANESTHESIA; BLOOD TRANSFUSION; CIRRHO-
SIS; EPSTEIN-BARR VIRUS; GRAFT VERSUS HOST DISEASE;
HEART TRANSPLANTATION; ISLET CELL TRANSPLANTATION;
KIDNEY TRANSPLANTATION; LIVER TRANSPLANTATION;
LUNG TRANSPLANTATION; SKIN REPLACEMENT; SURGERY
BENEFIT AND RISK ASSESSMENT.organ transplantation 273