JAMA Open Study Finds Segregation Slashes Liver Transplant Access; Waitlisted Patients Face Up To 30% Lower Odds

Segregated Neighborhoods Linked To Lower liver transplant Access, JAMA Open Study Finds

USA: A new study published in JAMA Open found that patients who live in highly segregated neighborhoods are significantly less likely to receive a liver transplant, highlighting a stark social determinant of transplantation access. Overall, the analysis showed a 19% lower likelihood of receiving a liver for residents of the most segregated areas.

The disparity widened among those already on waiting lists: patients waitlisted at transplant centers located in segregated neighborhoods experienced a 30.6% lower likelihood of receiving a liver compared with waitlisted patients served by centers in predominantly white neighborhoods. The study frames neighborhood segregation as a barrier that can shape opportunities for organ allocation and timely transplantation.

Separately, researchers at the National Sleep Foundation reported that adults who perceive themselves as older than their chronological age are more likely to suffer insomnia symptoms, greater sleep-related impairment, and lower sleep regularity, with self-reported declines in physical health as the perceived age gap increases. Sleep disruption and poorer physical health among potential transplant candidates can compound clinical risk and complicate evaluation for transplantation.

Taken together, the findings from JAMA Open and the National Sleep Foundation underscore how structural and individual health factors intersect around liver transplant access and outcomes. Study authors call for targeted research and policy responses so transplant centers, clinicians, and policymakers can address social inequities and patient-level risks that may limit equitable transplantation.

Video originally published on 2026-06-03 06:49:14