Organ donation after cardiac death: legal and ethical justifications for antemortem interventions

Rady, Mohamed Y; Verheijde, Joseph L; McGregor, Joan L

doi:10.5694/j.1326-5377.2008.tb01571.x

Topics

To the Editor: In the recent article by Richards and Rogers, the ethical and legal arguments made to justify antemortem interventions for organ donation after cardiac death (DCD) raise some questions.1

1 Mayo Clinic Hospital, Mayo Clinic Arizona, Phoenix, Ariz, USA.
2 Arizona State University, Tempe, Ariz, USA.

Correspondence: rady.mohamed@mayo.edu

1. Richards B, Rogers WA. Organ donation after cardiac death: legal and ethical justifications for antemortem interventions. Med J Aust 2007; 187: 168-170. <MJA full text>
2. Verheijde JL, Rady MY, McGregor J. Recovery of transplantable organs after cardiac or circulatory death: transforming the paradigm for the ethics of organ donation. Philos Ethics Humanit Med 2007; 2: 8. DOI: 10.1186/1747-5341-2-8.
3. Sprung CL, Maia P, Bulow HH, et al. The importance of religious affiliation and culture on end-of-life decisions in European intensive care units. Intensive Care Med 2007; 33: 1732-1739. DOI: 10.1007/s00134-007-0693-0.
4. Ornstein C, Weber T. Doctor charged in death of donor. A transplant surgeon is accused of attempting to hasten a patient’s demise in order to make use of his organs. Los Angeles Times 2007; 31 Jul: 1. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/advancedsearch.html (accessed Dec 2007).
5. Kesselring A, Kainz M, Kiss A. Traumatic memories of relatives regarding brain death, request for organ donation and interactions with professionals in the ICU. Am J Transplant 2007; 7: 211-217.

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