Organ Donation

Organ donation is the harvest of an organ or tissue from one individual to be transplanted into another. Organ donation can be done after brain death, after cardiac death or while the donor is alive for non-essential organs.

There is an ancient Chinese story, dating back to the 4th century BC, describing a surgeon who switched the hearts of two soldiers. The first documented donation occurred in 1818 in which a man donated blood to his wife after she lost blood during childbirth. This blood donation was arranged by obstetrician, James Blundell. The first successful bone donation was in 1878. The bone as harvested from a dead donor. The first documentation of a skin graft was in 1881.The Gift of a Lifetime: History of Transplantation

The content in this page is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Please contact your doctor for information regarding organ donation.