ABSTRACT
I. Introduction At the inception of clinical lung transplantation, strict parameters of lung donor criteria were developed (Table 1) (1), and these criteria helped establish the field of safe lung transplantation. However, acceptance rates for donor lungs were relatively low and the number of patients awaiting donor organs began to far exceed the number of accepted organs. Since that time, initial and long-term survival rates have continued to improve, and lung transplantation is now a routine option for end-stage lung failure. Given the improvements in clinical results for lung transplantation, the generally accepted criteria for donor organ selection are continually being challenged and expanded, allowing for the utilization of organs that were historically rejected. Some parameters have become validated while others retain unclear utility. Despite selection criteria, borne from experience and expert opinion, the process of donor lung selection continues to as well as depend on subjective assessment and judgment. In this chapter, we outline the major parameters for lung donor selection and review these criteria in light of the current literature.
