Developments in Brief : Patent Sought for New Organ Technique

A Louisiana research institute is seeking a patent for a new system that its developers say may be able to keep human organs alive and functioning outside the body for up to a month.

Officials of Gulf South Research Institute said the total organ perfusion system, or TOPS, has the potential of revolutionizing organ transplant surgery.

They described TOPS as a computer-controlled system relying on microprocessor technology to monitor organ function and other factors critical to sustaining life.

The system “will give doctors and patients a time window,” institute President Jim Clinton said. “With critical organs being kept alive for extended periods . . . the physician will have much more time to select the best available organ for a particular patient. The surgeon will also have more time to make adjustments and changes during the surgical process.”

He said such a system also may allow researchers to test a new drug’s ability to cure a disease in an isolated organ without fear of damaging other organs or systems in the body.

Clinton said the institute will keep testing and perfecting the system’s technology for at least the next year.