OrganOx Metra vs. TransMedics OCS
Two FDA-approved normothermic machine perfusion (NMP) devices are in routine clinical use for liver transplant. Both keep the donor liver warm and perfused with oxygenated blood during transport. They differ in how the team interacts with the device and what data the device reports during preservation.
OrganOx Metra
- The longer-running clinical platform for liver NMP in the US.
- Designed around continuous, autonomous perfusion — the device manages the perfusion variables with minimal hands-on adjustment in transit.
- Most published outcomes data for liver NMP comes from Metra-preserved grafts.
TransMedics OCS
- A multi-organ platform (lungs, hearts, livers) with the liver module added more recently.
- Used by some programs that already have a heart or lung TransMedics workflow and want a single perfusion platform across organs.
- Fewer published liver-only outcomes, but evidence is accumulating.
What this means for caregivers: if your center uses NMP at all, that's the bigger signal — both devices broaden the donor pool meaningfully versus cold storage alone. Asking which device they use is reasonable, but device choice is a smaller variable than program experience and case volume.
Educational only — clinician review pending. Not medical advice. Your transplant team has the final word.