The UNOS OPTN waiting list and donor registry.

1. On October 31, 1997, there were 55,789 registrations on the combined UNOS waiting list. Of these, two-thirds were awaiting kidney transplantation, and 17% were awaiting liver transplantation. 2. More than one-half of all patients on the UNOS waiting list on October 31, 1997 had blood type O, 59% were White, 58% were male, and 54% were aged 18-49. 3. Annual additions to the UNOS kidney waiting list grew from 11,916 in 1988 to 18,253 in 1996. The largest increase in waiting list size was seen in the lung waiting list, which grew 1,482% during this time. 4. Median waiting times have increased steadily for nearly every organ since 1988, especially for liver, kidney, and lung registrants. 5. For patients added to the waiting list in 1995, MWTs to transplant were longest for heart-lung registrants (887 days); however, no median could be calculated for kidney registrants added in 1995. The shortest waiting times for this cohort were experienced by heart registrants (208 days). 6. Death rates per 1,000 patient-years at risk have declined during 1988-1996. Death rates were higher for patients awaiting life-saving organs (liver, heart, lung, heart-lung) than for non-lifesaving organs (kidney, pancreas, kidney-pancreas). 7. There were 5,417 cadaveric and 3,553 living donors recovered in 1996, a 33% and 95% increase, respectively, over those recovered in 1988. 8. The number of organs recovered per cadaveric donor increased from 3.0 in 1988 to 3.8 in 1994 and dropped to 3.6 in 1996. At the same time, the number of organs transplanted per cadaveric donor recovered increased from 2.7 to 3.2. 9. Large increases in the number of donors who were liver (45-82%), pancreas (14-23%), and lung (3-14%) donors occurred between 1988 and 1996. 10. The number of cadaveric donors aged 50 or older has increased from 12% of all donors in 1988 to 27% of all donors in 1996. 11. The typical cadaveric donor in 1996 was a White male with ABO blood type O, between the ages of 18-34. In 1996, a typical living donor was a White female with ABO blood type O between the ages of 35-49. 12. Between 1988 and 1996, the percentage of minority donations increased for cadaveric donors (17-23%), and for living donors (24-27%). 13. The number of living donors who were either spouses or unrelated to the recipient increased from 4% in 1988 to 14% in 1996.