Liver transplants from overdose victims surge for fifth time in first year of Covid pandemic

A new study finds that liver transplants from overdose victims are on the rise in the first year of the COVID pandemic, as more young men die from drugs.

Dr. Peter Lymberopoulos, who led the research at St George’s University in the Caribbean country of Grenada, said the results were “surprising” given the number of aborted surgeries.

He added that the 20% increase in overdose victims was due to more people using drugs to cope with economic and social pressures during lockdown.

About 8,000 liver transplants are performed annually in the United States, according to estimates for people who experience organ failure, often due to viral infections, cancers, and lifestyle factors such as a heavy alcoholic.

It is safe to take liver from patients who have overdosed, because they are all tested for disease before transmission and do not pass drug addiction. It is also the only organ that can repair itself after damage.

The study lasted until June 2021 and did not include any cases of liver disease in the mysterious hepatitis outbreak that occurred recently.

In 2021, 108,000 Americans died from drug overdoses, and opioids, including fentanyl, were behind nearly three of the five deaths.

The table above shows the CDC’s estimates of the number of overdose deaths in the United States each year. It reveals that the numbers have reached an all-time high and have increased over the past three years.

In the study, presented at the American Gastroenterological Association’s Digestive Disease Week meeting in San Diego, California, scientists looked at transplant data from the U.S. organ donor registry.

They looked at the numbers run from January 2019 to February 2020 – and for the next 14 months – from May 2020 to June 2021 before the Covid coup.

The data showed a significant increase in liver transplants from patients who had overdosed, from 1,465 to 1,846.

However, there was a significant increase in kidney transplants (from 1,724 to 2,259) and heart transplants (from 804 to 1,048) from this group, both by about a quarter over the previous period.

There was a 14 percent increase in the number of lung transplants (from 470 to 548), but the scientists said it didn’t matter.

The data show that donors who die of drug overdose average 36 years old.

The study found that about 18 percent of all donated organs accounted for, compared to 15 percent before.

Dr. Lymberopoulos said: “When the pandemic started, we did not see a decline in liver transplants, which seemed surprising because many surgeries were canceled or postponed.

“Unfortunately, one of the main reasons seems to be the increase in organ donors dying from overdose.”

“In liver transplants, we found a surprising increase in overdose donors in the first 14 months of the pandemic compared to the previous 14 months.

‘Organ transplants are successful, but often come at a cost. In most cases these are young men who die prematurely from an overdose.

In the United States, organ transplants from overdose victims increased in five of seven health regions.

The increase was strongest in the South Midwest and Southwest – 68% – followed by the Southeast – 55% -, the Northwest – 46% – and the North Midwest – 38%.

It declined only in the Mid-Atlantic region – down 6% – and remained stable in the Northeast.

The article has not been peer-reviewed and has not yet been published in a scientific journal.

America had a record 108,000 drug overdose deaths last year, according to preliminary data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

It marked a 15% increase from last year’s record of 93,655 drug deaths, and the seventh consecutive increase in 12 months.

Opioids, including fentanyl, were linked to most deaths, corresponding to 80,800, followed by psychostimulants such as methamphetamine in approximately 33,000. It was possible that more than one drug was linked to one death.

Only one state, Hawaii, saw overdose deaths drop last year, and Appalachian states like West Virginia, Tennessee and Pennsylvania remained the country’s hotspots for victims.