This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated the effects of ex vivo lung perfusion (EVLP) of marginal donor lungs. Out of the 1380 records identified, eight studies (n=1191 patients) met the pre-defined inclusion criteria and were selected for the meta-analysis. There was no significant difference in severe primary graft dysfunction (PGD 3) at 72 hours (OR 0.79; p=0.47), 30-day survival (OR 0.77; p=0.55), or 1-year survival (OR 0.89; p=0.62) between EVLP-treated and standard donor lungs. Also, both groups had similar lengths of postoperative ventilation and ICU stay (p=0.13 and p=0.30, respectively). This systematic review and meta-analysis provides further confirmation EVLP-treatment of high-risk donor lungs result in outcomes comparable with those of standard donor lung transplantation, and may improve donor lung use for successful transplantation.
J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg / 2020 / doi: 10.1016/j.jtcvs.2019.07.087
