(New York, N.Y.) January 17, 2007 - After years of trailing behind much of the nation with organ donation consent rates well below 50 percent, a record number of 319 people in the greater New York metropolitan area became organ donors upon their death in 2006, elevating the consent rate to 56 percent. According to data from the New York Organ Donor Network, the unprecedented rise in the number of deceased organ donors reflects an increase of 22 percent in the number of deceased organ donors compared to 2004, the previous benchmark year.

The highest-ever number of organ donors in 2006 led to another groundbreaking record: the lives of 743 peoples of all ages were saved through organ transplantation in the metropolitan region. In fact, the number of organ recipients exceeded the 700 threshold for the first time. In 2005, when the previous record fell, 627 recipients received a second chance at life.

The Donor Network also announced that a total of 689 tissue donors in 2006 set yet another new record. The number of tissue donors, including those who gave bone, heart-valves and veins, exceeds by 11 percent the previous record set in 2005.

"The year 2006 can truly be described as a dramatic breakthrough for organ and tissue donation in the five boroughs and the surrounding counties," said Elaine Berg, president and CEO of the Donor Network. "We believe that, at long last, there is a very positive shift in the way New Yorkers feel about donation. We continue to be in awe of the donors who expressed their willingness to give the gift of life. And we will be forever grateful to the donor families who, at the most difficult time of their lives helped to give life to others. Hopefully, the highest level of generosity displayed by the donor families will be of comfort to them, as they remember and celebrate the lives of their loved ones."

Ms. Berg explained that the dramatic rise in the number of donors in 2006 can be attributed to various educational programs and initiatives for health care professionals and the general public, many of which were introduced six years ago or more.

"For example," she said, "a steady increase in the number of Donor Network family service coordinators placed in the hospitals since 2001 means that they can interact more closely and build trust with donor families and hospital personnel. There is, overall, a substantially higher level of collaboration between the Donor Network and the hospitals, in large measure due to a series of federal initiatives that began in 2003 designed to maximize donation rates."

Ms. Berg added that heightened public education and grass-roots programs over the past few years that targeted at New York's diverse population were now finally resulting in a greater acceptance of organ and tissue donation. "We are reaching out to many communities in their own languages and sensitive to their culture, religion and beliefs," she stated.

2006: Key Organ and Tissue Donation Data in the Greater New York Metropolitan Area

• The number of deceased organ donors was 319 in 2006 - a record. The number rose from as low as 199 in 2001 to 262 in 2004. In 2005, the number remained flat, at 261, before its dramatic rise in 2006.
  
  
• The consent rate for organ donation from deceased donors was 56 percent in 2006, also a record. The consent rate rose from 39 percent in 2001 to 41 percent in 2002 and 2003. The consent rate then climbed to 47 percent in 2004 and 48 percent in 2005, before its record-breaking increase in 2006.
  
  
• Of the 319 deceased organ donors in 2006, 176 were male and 143 female.
  
  
• Age of deceased organ donors: Overall, 12 were below the age of five, while 43 were over 71 years of age. The largest number of donors (121) was aged 16-45, followed by 94 donors (46 - 60). Note: The oldest organ donor was 92; the youngest, just 18 days.
  
  
• Race of the 319 deceased organ donors. 211 were white (a 62 percent consent rate, up from 52 percent from 2005); 92 were black (a 52 percent consent rate, up from 41 percent in 2005); 7 were Asian (a 27 percent consent rate, up from 17 percent in 2005); and 9 were categorized as "other."
  
  
• Hispanic: Of the 319 deceased organ donors, 110 were Hispanic. The consent rate for Hispanics remained steady at 63 percent in 2005 and 2006.
  
  
• Organs transplanted in 2006 from deceased donors: 399 kidneys were transplanted, compared to 339 in 2005; 65 hearts compared to 59; 57 lungs compared to 40 in 2005; 240 livers compared to 195 in 2005; and seven intestines compared to five in 2005. A total of two islet cells (one more than in 2005) and 28 pancreas (one less than in 2005) were also transplanted.
  
  
• Tissue donors in 2006: Among the 689 tissue donors in 2006, 456 were musculoskeletal donors, compared to 397 in 2005; 464 were eye donors, compared to 453 in 2006; 177 donated heart valves, compared to 144 in 2005; 209 donated veins, compared to 163 in 2005; 173 were skin donors, compared to 156 in 2005.
  
  

A Note about the Small Pool of Deceased Organ Donors Each Year

The small pool of potential organ donors nationwide and locally is explained by the fact that the vast majority of organs are recovered from hospital patients who have been declared dead by neurological criteria. Brain deaths account for approximately one to two percent of all deaths of patients in hospitals, making it a relatively rare event.

New York Organ Donor Network:

Founded in 1978, the New York Organ Donor Network is the second largest of the nation's 58 nonprofit, federally designated organ procurement organizations (OPOs). It is responsible for the recovery of organs and tissues for transplantation, and public and professional education efforts for a culturally and ethnically diverse population of 13 million in the greater New York metropolitan area. The Donor Network serves Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Staten Island, Long Island, Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, and Westchester, and also Pike County, PA. It works closely with nine transplant centers and more than 100 hospitals.

For more information, contact Martin Woolf, Communications Manager, at 646-291-4460. Or e-mail at mwoolf@nyodn.org.