Organ donation after cardiac death.

A rapid increase in the rate of organ recovery from deceased persons has occurred in the category of donation after “cardiac death.” Dr. Robert Steinbrook writes that these donations remain troubling to some and are not as widely accepted as donations after brain death. Drs. Francis Delmonico and Michael Grodin debate the benefits, risks, and ethics of organ donation after cardiac death rather than brain death. Dr. Francis Delmonico is chief of transplant services at Massachusetts General Hospital and medical director of the New England Organ Bank. Michael Grodin is professor of health law, bioethics, and human rights at the Boston University School of Public Health.