# Aggressive Center Report Cards to Safely Increase Transplantation of Suboptimal Kidneys

> **NIH NIH K23** · JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $170,961

## Abstract

The kidney transplant (KT) waitlist has grown substantially, with more than 100,000 people currently waiting.
Despite this, fewer than 18,000 undergo KT annually in the U.S. This has created a profound disparity between
organ supply and demand, leading to unacceptable waitlist mortality. To address this disparity, many surgeons
have increased utilization of suboptimal kidneys (SOKs), such as kidneys from elderly donors, donors after
cardiac death (DCD), HCV infected donors, donors with prolonged cold ischemia times (CIT) and donors with
elevated terminal creatinine. Although reports demonstrate acceptable outcomes with SOKs, utilization varies
widely across the U.S. and organ discard rates remain alarmingly high. Between 2000-2013, approximately
31,000 (21%) procured kidneys were discarded. Aggressive utilization of discarded kidneys would have
immediate and profound impact on annual KT rates.
We previously explored nationwide utilization of SOKs, and defined the “aggressive center phenotype”,
identifying only a small number of transplant centers who more aggressively utilized SOKs to help their
waitlisted patients achieve KT. We found that only a small number of centers aggressively utilized ALL types of
SOKs. Instead, most centers selectively transplanted specific subtypes of SOKs, likely influenced by surgeon
preference and center expertise. If transplant centers had a mechanism to gauge their SOK acceptance and
post-transplant outcomes, in comparison to other centers, there may be broader utilization of SOKs. To date,
no method exists to provide transplant centers with comparative feedback on SOK utilization and outcomes.
Outside of the field of transplantation, numerous quality improvement interventions providing similar outcome
feedback and inter-hospital comparisons, such as the American College of Surgeons' National Surgical Quality
Improvement Program (ACS ASQIP), have led to alterations in clinical practice and reductions in morbidity and
mortality. Our scientific goal is to develop center-level aggressiveness report cards (ARC) that provide timely,
accurate and easily interpretable feedback to surgeons responsible for organ acceptance. We hypothesize that
feedback will alter surgeon behavior, leading to broader utilization of SOKs, increased KT, and decreased
waitlist mortality.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9947929
- **Project number:** 5K23DK115908-03
- **Recipient organization:** JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Jacqueline M Garonzik Wang
- **Activity code:** K23 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $170,961
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-07-01 → 2022-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9947929

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9947929, Aggressive Center Report Cards to Safely Increase Transplantation of Suboptimal Kidneys (5K23DK115908-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9947929. Licensed CC0.

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