Preservation and Matching Once organs have been surgically recovered from a donor and placed in cold preservation, they must be transplanted within a certain period of time in order to remain viable: Heart = 4 hours Lungs = 4 hours Liver = 12 hours Pancreas = 12 hours Kidneys = 36-72 hours (usually transplanted within 24 hours)

Organs are generally matched by the following UNOS (United Network for Organ Sharing) guidelines: Blood type and/or tissue type Size (height and weight) * Geographic area (transplant locally first) Time on waiting list Medical status of patient ** * Size is not always a factor for every organ. For example, kidney matching is very dependent on tissue typing rather than size. For some organs, such as the heart, size is an important consideration. For example, surgeons cannot transplant the heart of a 250-pound man into a small child. ** There are different status levels depending on which organ is listed. In general, Status 1 is the highest priority. This means the potential recipient is in a hospital intensive care unit - days or hours from death.