Despite progress, Black patients still less likely to get heart transplants
From www.myjournalcourier.com
2021-08-25 19:07:11
Excerpt:
Black people in need of a new heart are less likely than their white peers to get a transplant, and when they do, they’re more likely to die afterward, according to new research.
The study, published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Heart Association, analyzed the impact of changes made in 2018 to how transplants are allocated with the aim of expanding availability.
That year, the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) revised its allocation system, striving to improve access to organs among the sickest patients and to reduce racial and regional disparities. The older system created longer waiting times for people in diverse, high-population cities, potentially affecting Black and Hispanic recipients disproportionately.
Evidence for this situation was reported in 2018 at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions conference. The preliminary research suggested that between 2005 and 2016, Black patients…