Experimental study of lung transplantation from non-heart-beating donor following brain death in canine model of left lung allotransplantation.

Thirty mongrel dogs were divided into 3 groups. Group I was a normal control group (n = 4) without transplantation procedure. Group II was a transplantation control group (n = 5) with left lung allotransplantation from heart-beating donor. Group III consisted of animals (n = 8) which received lung allografts from non-heart-beating donor following brain death. In Group III, brain death was brought about by intracranial hypertension with the inflation of balloon in the subdural space of donor. After 6 hours, the mechanical ventilation was discontinued followed by cardiac arrest. Left lung was excised twenty minutes after the cardiac arrest and was washed out with cold Ep4 solution for subsequent orthotopic allotransplantation. Right pulmonary arterial occlusion test (RPAO) were carried out under right thoracotomy to evaluate graft function immediately and 7 to 14 days after the surgery. PaO2, PAP and CO were measured before and 20 minutes after RPAO. All animals in Group II and 7 of 8 animals in Group III survived more than 7 days after surgery. No significant differences in the value of PaO2, mean PAP and TPVR with RPAO among three groups at each time of assessment, showing the possibility of lung transplantation from non-heart-beating donor followed by brain death.