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Background: Despite high waiting list mortality rates, concern still exists on the appropriateness of using livers donated after circulatory death (DCD). We compared mortality and graft loss in recipients of livers donated after circulatory or brainstem death (DBD) across two successive time periods., Methods: Observational multinational data from the United Kingdom and Ireland were partitioned into two time periods (2008-2011 and 2012-2016). Cox regression methods were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) comparing the impact of periods on post-transplant mortality and graft failure., Results: A total of 1176 DCD recipients and 3749 DBD recipients were included. Three-year patient mortality rates decreased markedly from 19.6 per cent in time period 1 to 10.4 per cent in time period 2 (adjusted HR 0.43, 95 per cent c.i. 0.30 to 0.62; P < 0.001) for DCD recipients but only decreased from 12.8 to 11.3 per cent (adjusted HR 0.96, 95 per cent c.i. 0.78 to 1.19; P = 0.732) in DBD recipients (P for interaction = 0.001). No time period-specific improvements in 3-year graft failure were observed for DCD (adjusted HR 0.80, 95% c.i. 0.61 to 1.05; P = 0.116) or DBD recipients (adjusted HR 0.95, 95% c.i. 0.79 to 1.14; P = 0.607). A slight increase in retransplantation rates occurred between time period 1 and 2 in those who received a DCD liver (from 7.3 to 11.8 per cent; P = 0.042), but there was no change in those receiving a DBD liver (from 4.9 to 4.5 per cent; P = 0.365). In time period 2, no difference in mortality rates between those receiving a DCD liver and those receiving a DBD liver was observed (adjusted HR 0.78, 95% c.i. 0.56 to 1.09; P = 0.142)., Conclusion: Mortality rates more than halved in recipients of a DCD liver over a decade and eventually compared similarly to mortality rates in recipients of a DBD liver. Regions with high waiting list mortality may mitigate this by use of DCD livers., (© The Author(s) 2021. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of BJS Society Ltd.)

Background: Ireland has been relatively free of sickle-cell disease (SCD) and a care policy for the disease has not been established., Aim: To determine the prevalence of childhood SCD in Ireland and to predict requirements for a comprehensive care and assessment programme., Methods: We retrospectively analysed the data of children with SCD presenting with sickle-cell crisis to one institution from January 1999 to April 2001. We also determined the nature and severity of the presenting haemoglobinopathy phenotype., Results: Ninety-two patients with haemoglobinopathy have been registered with the Paediatric Haematology Service. The majority are from Nigeria with a smaller number from Angola and the Congo. Sixty have sickle-cell trait, 23 SCD, four haemoglobin SC disease and two haemoglobin E (HbE). There have been 32 sickle-cell crises. The majority were haemolytic or splenic sequestration events with a smaller number of aplastic and vaso-occlusive events and one osteomyelitis., Conclusion: The increasing number of children presenting with SCD as a result of the increasing refugee numbers requires a comprehensive care approach similar to that required for paediatric haemophilia to ensure optimum care.