During the study period, (a) the number of viremic donor kidneys increased 2 folds; (b) the multilevel mixed-effects logistic regression models showed that, overall, the PHS labeling (OR 1.20, CI 95% CI 1.15-1.29) and HCV designation (OR 2.29; 95% CI 2.15-2.43) were independently associated with increased risk of discard; (c) contrary to the general perception, PHS-IR kidneys across all HCV groups, compared to PHS-IR kidneys were more likely to be discarded; (d) we forecasted that the number of kidneys from HCV viremic donor kidneys might increase from 1376 in 2019 to 2092 in 2023.
The use of Public Health Service/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PHS/CDC) high-risk donor (HRD) organs remains controversial, especially in light of a recent high-profile case of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) transmission.