You cannot be an organ donor if you CTB

[ferrie]

I keep seeing people talk about organ donation lately, and it's surprising how many people don't know how it works. The reason organ donation is so rare is because the body has to be kept on a ventilator until the organs are harvested. If you die before you are put on a ventilator, oxygen stops moving through your body & cell death begins. Organs that have begun to die cannot be transplanted. You cannot CTB & then be placed on the ventilator after. Really the only thing that may be donated if your body isn't already on support when you die is your corneas and some tissues. However, in the majority of jurisdictions, an autopsy is required when suicide is suspected as the cause of death, even if it seems obvious what happened. This further bars you from donating even your corneas & tissues because of the length of time it takes for an autopsy to be done. There's really no practical way for any of your organs to be donated if you want to CTB

 

[lacrimosa]

Interesting... Thanks for the information!

What about if you die of electrocution in a bathtub full of ice and call the authorities before you CTB? Then, I think organ donation is still on the table... Not a recommendation in any sense but merely a hypothetical...

 

[N3UR0T1C]

Interesting... Thanks for the information!

What about if you die of electrocution in a bathtub full of ice and call the authorities before you CTB? Then, I think organ donation is still on the table... Not a recommendation in any sense but merely a hypothetical...

No, that's going to cause a ton of organ damage. Also, you still gotta get an autopsy which precludes organ donation.

 

[lacrimosa]

No, that's going to cause a ton of organ damage. Also, you still gotta get an autopsy which precludes organ donation.

Damn, I totally ignored that part of the original post. My bad...

No, that's going to cause a ton of organ damage. Also, you still gotta get an autopsy which precludes organ donation.

I was thinking of the movie Seven Pounds...

 

[ferrie]

Interesting... Thanks for the information!

What about if you die of electrocution in a bathtub full of ice and call the authorities before you CTB? Then, I think organ donation is still on the table... Not a recommendation in any sense but merely a hypothetical...

Yeah like N3UR0T1C said, this would cause organ damage & the autopsy would make you unable to donate organs. It also doesn't matter how quickly the authorities reach you. You could CTB in a hospital and still not be able to donate organs bc your body needs to be on support BEFORE you die

 

[danter0id]

this is true for some methods, certainly for any poisoning and anything where you aren't found until well after irreversible cardiac death... but when I worked for an OPO, we actually had tons of donor cases that were self-inflicted gunshot wounds.

 

[dinosavr]

Honestly? Brutally honestly? I probably would feel guilty for saving someone's life when I genuinely believe that life is bad, especially after transplantation when you're in constant fear and pain.

 

[hematomatema]

this is true for some methods, certainly for any poisoning and anything where you aren't found until well after irreversible cardiac death... but when I worked for an OPO, we actually had tons of donor cases that were self-inflicted gunshot wounds.

Some poisonings work as well, depending on the particular substance - while I was looking into my method, I found an article about a kidney transplant that was done after a successful suicide attempt using my method. I think there's less of a chance and it might depend on where you live but it doesn't seem as if you're automatically exempt from organ donation.

 

[danter0id]

Some poisonings work as well, depending on the particular substance - while I was looking into my method, I found an article about a kidney transplant that was done after a successful suicide attempt using my method. I think there's less of a chance and it might depend on where you live but it doesn't seem as if you're automatically exempt from organ donation.

that's so interesting! I'm surprised a transplant surgeon took that one - usually they're INSANELY picky about which organs they take and don't. I never saw a transplant go thru from a poisoning from any non-opioid substance, nor did I even see one make it to the "donor case" stage, but could be my OPO's policies were stricter.

 

[Tesha]

Your can't donate your body to medical research if you commit suicide either (in the UK anyway). There's actually a shit tonne of paperwork to complete if you want to donate to a medical facility - and they have very strict acceptance criteria.

 

[Talvikki]

Successful Liver Transplantation After Neurologically Determined Death Donation Following Sodium Nitrite Poisoning.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9892231/

 

[ferrie]

this is true for some methods, certainly for any poisoning and anything where you aren't found until well after irreversible cardiac death... but when I worked for an OPO, we actually had tons of donor cases that were self-inflicted gunshot wounds.

Do you know what organs were collected in these cases? I'm assuming the patient initially survived the gunshot wound? Otherwise it was my understanding that only the corneas and soft tissue would be viable

 

[hematomatema]

If we're adding sources for transplants in cases of suicide, here's:

A Case Report of Successful Kidney Donation After Brain Death Following Nicotine Intoxication

just for shits and gigs

 

[danter0id]

Do you know what organs were collected in these cases? I'm assuming the patient initially survived the gunshot wound? Otherwise it was my understanding that only the corneas and soft tissue would be viable

"survived" in the sense that pt achieved ROSC, yes. for one I remember off the top of my head, kidneys, liver, heart went. and ofc tissue went also (corneas, soft tissue, bone)

 

[ferrie]

Successful Liver Transplantation After Neurologically Determined Death Donation Following Sodium Nitrite Poisoning.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9892231/

This case works because the patient was brain dead while receiving supportive care. Though I am surprised that no autopsy was required despite admitting to sodium nitrite poisoning. In my jurisdiction, autopsies are performed for nearly all suicide cases
There's clearly cases where organ donation is possible in the event of a suicide, so I'll admit that the premise of my original post is wrong. In my jurisdiction it's unheard of so I assumed that would hold true, but that's obviously not always the case! Glad people fact checked me. Definitely worth looking into the rules around organ donation in your area. I will stand by saying that I don't think you can reliably expect to donate organs if you plan to CTB. Even in the case reports shared here, a different transplant surgeon might not have accepted the organs, and in some jurisdictions autopsies are required for suicides. Mileage will definitely vary on if your organs can be accepted. I also think the goal for many people is not to be found to reliably ensure death which also lowers the probability of organ donation. I think the overall take away should be that organ donation in the event of a suicide is possible but likely very rare

 

[Forever Sleep]

I suspect we could if we had access to assisted suicide. Another good reason to my mind to legalise and regulate it.