PROCUREMENT AND PREPARATION OF HUMAN ISOLATED SMALL-INTESTINAL GRAFTSFOR TRANSPLANTATION

We have developed a donor operation that incorporates en bloc removal of the liver and intestine with a limited surgical resection in vivo. Over the past 18 months, we have used the following technique for the retrieval and preparation of seven isolated small intestinal allograft s. The donor operation and bench preparation can be divided into three phases. During the first phase, the small intestine is removed with t he Liver, pancreas, and an aortic segment. In the second phase perform ed ex vivo, the donor liver can be separated from the specimen, The th ird phase involves additional bench dissection to yield an isolated in testinal allograft. The principle advantage of this technique is that it reduces potential liver injury by minimizing the surgical dissectio n required in vivo. Also, dividing the liver from the intestine ex viv o allows the organs to be separated in a bloodless field under control led conditions that may be especially important when two different sur gical teams are involved.