80 - Donor Weight Criteria in US Body Donation Programs: Website Analysis, Results, & Next Steps

Poster Board Number: 80
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Co-authors:

Sophie Orr - PhD Student, The University of California Davis; Heidi Reis, MLIS - East Carolina University; Soph Myers-Kelley, MLIS - East Carolina University; Kerry Sewell, MSLS - East Carolina University; Maureen Helgren, PhD, PT - Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine at Quinnipiac University; rebecca Pearl, PhD - University of Florida College of Public Health and Health Profession; Marisa Langton - MD Student, Drexel University College of Medicine; Malli Barremkala, MBBS - Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine

Abstract Body : Obese patients experience negative patient-provider interactions due to implicit and explicit weight bias. These ideations towards obese patients result in negative implications such as increased patient stress, mistrust of providers, and avoidance of care. Moreover, negative views of larger individuals have been shown in the anatomy lab describing human gifts (donors) as difficult, unhealthy, and evoking disgust.

Medical schools rely on body donation programs to obtain donors for teaching anatomy. Many programs utilize specific criteria for donation, including body weight or body mass index (BMI). To date, there has been no systematic analysis of the extent of weight criteria for donors, and the justifications for such criteria remain largely undocumented. Our objective is to assess online criteria for body donation in the United States, specifically focusing on body habitus (including weight, height, and BMI). Furthermore, we aim to identify any discernible trends that may warrant improvement, particularly in relation to weight-based discriminations.

We evaluated 128 US body donation program websites. The body donation programs were compiled from the Anatomical Board of the State of Florida. Weight-related terms and exclusion criteria were systematically assessed by study team members using a Redcap survey.

Weight restrictions were found on 116 (90.6%) of the body donation program websites. Among these websites, numerical, general, and sex-differentiated weight limits were listed on 43 (33.59%), 73 (66.41%), and 4 (3.13%) sites, respectively. The average upper weight limits ranged from 200-250 pounds (total range = 180–400 pounds). Upper weight limits for women were lower than those for men. Upper BMI limits were found on 15 sites (11.72%) and lower BMI limits were found on 5 sites (3.9%). On average, the upper BMI limit was 30 kg/m² (total range = 27 – 35 kg/m²). Ten sites gave height restrictions. Only 11 programs provided justifications for weight limitations, largely related to equipment, storage capacity, and preservation process concerns.

Our analysis cannot elucidate the reasoning behind body habitus criteria. Furthermore, the diversity in weight and BMI criteria highlights the absence of a standardized approach in the body donation process. The authors plan to conduct follow-up surveys and qualitative interviews to better understand the rationale behind body habitus requirements. With this research we hope to contribute to the establishment of standardized and ethical body donation criteria.