UNOS DonateLife

December 5, 2006

United Network for Organ Sharing Receives Funding to Continue Developing a Disease Transmission Reporting System

United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), which oversees the nation's Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) under a federal government contract, has received second year funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for a cooperative agreement to develop a new system to enhance transplant patient safety. The Transplantation Transmission Sentinel Network (TTSN) system will allow the detection, reporting, and tracking of disease transmission from donors to organ, tissue and eye transplant recipients. The TTSN is being developed collaboratively under the guidance of an Advisory Group composed of an alliance of organizations in key areas of organ, tissue, and eye transplantation.

The three year project received funding of $337,000 for the second year; these funds will be primarily allocated to developing a unique electronic Web-based communication forum linking organ, tissue and eye recipients in one comprehensive database. All adverse events, such as disease transmission, reported by organ procurement organizations and transplant centers through the current online OPTN/UNOS patient safety system will be entered into the electronic database, allowing users to search the database before transplant. As tissues and eyes require additional testing and longer storage due to their increased viability compared to organs, the system could be used to detect transmission in organ transplant patients more quickly, and potentially preventing additional transmission from the same donor by ensuring that other tissues will not be used. The system will allow users to track allografts from the donor to the recipient, receive notifications of recognized donor disease transmission events and receive education and communication through a secure Internet site.

Since its inception last year, the TTSN Advisory Group has formed and created a unique donor identification system to facilitate the tracking of organs, tissues and eyes, which is an essential first step for development of the project.

"The development of TTSN is a critical advance in improving transplantation safety," said Matthew J. Kuehnert, M.D., coordinator for blood, organ, and other tissue safety at CDC.  "Reporting of adverse events if communicated rapidly can allow for early detection or prevention of additional illness in other recipients."

The first stage of programming for the new TTSN system is expected to be completed in December 2006, with planned completion of the full system in 2008.

The TTSN includes United Network for Organ Sharing, Association of Organ Procurement Organizations, American Association of Tissue Banks, Eye Bank Association of America, American Society of Transplantation, the American Society of Transplant Surgeons, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Food and Drug Administration, Health Resources and Services Administration, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, American Academy of Ophthalmology, and The Society of Thoracic Surgeons.

A private, nonprofit organization, UNOS manages the nation's organ transplant system and oversees the world's most comprehensive database of clinical transplant information under contract with the federal government. UNOS operates the 24-hour computerized organ sharing system, matching donated organs to patients registered on the national organ transplant waiting list. UNOS seeks to increase organ donation through education and improve transplant success rates through outcomes-based research and policymaking. The strength of the transplant database relies on the conscientious reporting of 412 UNOS member institutions.