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Every year, around 2.2 lakh new persons in India are diagnosed with End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD).However, the number of kidney transplants performed each year is only about 9000-12000. Kidney transplantation certainly outperforms other options of renal replacement therapy in terms of quality of life, survival and cost effectiveness. Donations from deceased donors accounts for only about 6% with living donations accounting for 94% of total renal transplantations. In India, the transplantation programme is constrained by a lack of donor organs, expertise, and public awareness about organ donation. We conducted a study to assess the knowledge of renal transplantation, attitude and awareness towards organ donation amongst general population in India.
A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was done in India between June and October 2023 amongst general public who attended a tertiary care hospital. Responses were discreetly recorded after obtaining informed consent and demographic details. Knowledge was assessed using 15 items and assigned a 15 point score, whereas attitudes were measured with 13 items using a 5-step Likert scale, with a total score ranging from 5 to 65. A binary variable (0=No; 1=Yes) was used to assess donors' willingness to donate. Descriptive statistics was used to evaluate demographic data.
About 515 of the 608 participants completed the study, resulting in a response rate of 84.7%.About 51% were males and the average age was 35.4 ±11.8 years. About 77 % belonged to Hindu religion, followed by Christianity(15%) and Islam (5%).
Approximately 92% were aware of organ donation, and 89% were familiar with the term organ transplantation. Only 63% were aware that brain death was distinct from coma. The general population's knowledge of organ donation had a mean score (± SD) of 9 ± 2.9. The mean (± SD) score for attitudes towards organ donation was 49.2 ± 7.01.
Over 83% felt comfortable discussing organ donation, and 91% acknowledged that it is a lifesaving procedure that helped ESRD patients.
Though 68% of respondents denied that organ donation violates their religious beliefs, nearly 33% agreed that living organ donation is preferable to donation of deceased organs in addressing India's organ shortage.
While a majority expressed willingness to donate their family members' organs,14% percent deemed it was disrespectful to donate their family members' organs.
Though 82% of respondents wished to donate their organs, only 27% had signed an organ donation card at the time of the survey. Surprisingly, only 20% knew where to obtain organ donation cards, and 10% worried that signing an organ donation card early may usher misfortune.
Approximately 45 % believed that both the Internet (46%) and medical institutions (45%) played a significant role in promoting awareness about organ donation. Yet, around 63% expressed concern about the rare (6 monthly-annually once) coverage of organ donation and the paucity of information on organ transplantation across various social media platforms.
Gender
Males 260 (50.5%)
< 50 dollars 21 (4%)
50-100 dollars 30 (6%)
100-200 dollars 36 (7%)
Yes 422 ( 82%)
Yes 140 ( 27%)
No 375 ( 73%)
Internet( Facebook/ twitter/Instagram) 302 (59%)
Interpersonal communication 45 ( 9%)
Newspaper/magazines/brochures (12%)
Student 30 (6%)
Self-employed person 74 ( 14%)
Home maker 27 (5.2%)
Employees of enterprises and institutions/ Civil servant 266 (51.6%)
Rural Migrant workers 5 (1%)
Retired and others 113 (21.9%)
As the demand for life-saving kidney transplantation in ESRD grows, increasing the rate of cadaveric organ transplantation in India becomes essential. Enhancing the public's awareness about brain death and deceased organ donations, as well as reducing public scepticism about organ donation, could contribute to increasing the rate of willingness to donate.