Reception of a living liver graft is more acceptable in German and American culture than it is in Japanese society, according to data from a study of 330 undergraduate medical students from Germany, Japan, and the United States.
Liver transplantation from a living donor is becoming more common, but ethical questions remain as to donor morbidity and mortality after the operation, said Marc H. Dahlke, M.D., of the University of Regensburg (Germany) and his colleagues.
They compared attitudes toward living liver donation among people from three different nations with comparable socioeconomic structures but diversity in traditional values, religious beliefs, and politics. A total of 165 German students, 99 Japanese students, and 66 American students completed the 28-item questionnaire.
Most of the German and American students said they would accept a living liver donation under any circumstances, while most of Japanese students were undecided. Most of the students from all three nations, however, would accept a living liver graft in a life-and-death situation (Psychosomatics 2005;46:58–64).
The willingness to accept a living liver donation decreased across all groups if there was a significant risk to the donor and if it was suggested that the results from a living donation would be worse than a cadaveric donation. In addition, American and German students were more willing than Japanese students to receive a cadaveric liver instead of a living liver.
The study was supported by a grant from Roche Germany and by Fujisawa Germany.