Search

Acute kidney injury (AKI) incidence is growing rapidly, and AKI is one of the predictors of inpatient mortality. After nephrectomy, all the patients have decreased kidney function with AKI and recover from AKI. However, the characteristic and behavior of AKI is different from usual AKI and compensatory kidney function has been well known in the postoperative setting, especially in living donors. In this review, we have focused on the compensation of kidney function after nephrectomy in living donors. We discuss factors that have been identified as being associated with kidney recovery in donors including age, sex, body mass index, remnant kidney volume, estimated glomerular filtration rate, and various comorbidities.

Urinary tract infection (UTI) occurs in 25% of recipients of living-donor kidney transplantation (LDKT). Female sex, age, and anatomical abnormalities have been reported as recipient-related risk factors for UTI after LDKT; few studies have reported donor-related factors. We retrospectively examined UTI occurrence within 5 years of transplantation in recipients (n = 211) who underwent LDKT at our hospital between April 2011 and April 2021. All nephrectomies were performed using a retroperitoneal pure laparoscopic approach. The ureter was dissected at the lower level of the common iliac artery and trimmed to the shortest length, enough to reach the bladder using extra vesicular ureterocystoneostomy with a 3 cm submucosal tunnel. Twenty-nine recipients (13.7%) developed UTI within 5 years, and the median time to onset was 40.0 days. After adjusting for the well-known factors, including recipient sex, graft ureter length was an independent factor for UTI occurrence (HR 1.25, 95% CI 1.02∼1.53, p = 0.028) in the multivariate Cox regression analysis. The long ureter is usually trimmed, and the widest part is used for anastomosis, which may increase the possibility of reflux from the bladder to the ureter in the standard technique. The ureter length may be associated with the incidence of UTI after LDKT.

Background In living donors, if both kidneys are considered to be of equal quality, the side with favorable anatomy for transplant is usually selected. A “suboptimal kidney” is a kidney that has a significant abnormality and is chosen to maintain the principle of leaving the better kidney with the donor. We hypothesized that the long-term outcome of suboptimal kidney is inferior to that of the normal kidney. Methods In a retrospective analysis of 1744 living donor kidney transplantations performed between 1999 and 2015 at our institution, 172 allografts were considered as a suboptimal kidney (9.9%). Median length of follow-up after living donor kidney transplantation was 59.5 months (interquartile range 26.3-100.8). This study strictly complied with the Helsinki Congress and the Istanbul Declaration regarding donor source. Results The reasons for suboptimal kidneys were cysts or tumors (46.5%), arterial abnormalities (22.7%), inferior size or function (19.8%), and anatomic abnormalities (11.0%). Suboptimal kidneys showed worse long-term overall graft survival regardless of the reasons (5-year: control vs suboptimal kidney; 88.9% vs 79.3%, P = .001 and 10-year: 73.6% vs 63.5%, P = .004). Suboptimal kidneys showed a 1.6-fold higher adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) of all-cause graft loss (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.1-2.5, P = .025) and had the same impact as older donor age (≥ 54 years old, aHR: 1.6, 95% CI: 1.1-2.4, P = .008). Conclusions The impact of suboptimal kidney should be factored into the donor selection process.

Introduction The Living Kidney Donor Profile Index (LKDPI) was recently proposed in the United States to evaluate living donor quality. Japan has a largely different renal transplant circumstance, such as a high ABO incompatibility rate. The aim of this study was to validate the LKDPI among the Japanese population and adjust the score. Methods We performed a retrospective analysis of 133 living donors in renal transplant in our institution. We analyzed the clinical characteristics and outcomes, and created a modified LKDPI score considering the favorable ABO incompatible kidney transplant outcomes in Japan. Results Median (interquartile range [IQR]) donor age was 59 (51 to 65) and median (IQR) body mass index was 22.9 kg/m2 (20.9 to 25.2). ABO incompatibility rate was 28.5%. Median (IQR) donor estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) (Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration equation) was 108.7 mL/min/1.73 m2 (99.9 to 115.5). The 1-year graft survival rate was 98.5%, and the 3-year graft survival rate was 97%. The incidence of antibody mediated rejection was 5.2%. The median (IQR) LKDPI score was 30.2 (11.8 to 46.8). This was significantly higher than the previously reported score in the United States, which was 12.8 (-0.8 to 27.2). The modified LKDPI (mLKDPI) score was 23.2 (4.1 to 35.1). LKDPI and mLKDPI did not show a diagnostic value in graft survival; however, LKDPI and mLKDPI showed significant diagnostic value in eGFR at 1 year (area under the curve [AUC]=0.627, P = .017; and AUC=0.673, P = .01). Conclusion Our outcomes had better survival even though with higher ABO incompatibility rate. According to original LKDPI, our donor pool is higher than the general US population. In this study, lower LKDPI tended to be associated with good allograft function, and mLKDPI has better diagnostic value than LKDPI. To compare internationally, an adjusted model for Japan might be necessary based on the outcomes of a large population.

Once-daily extended-release tacrolimus (TACER) is commonly administered following kidney transplantation (KTx); however, its optimal dosage remains unknown.In this multi-center, randomized controlled trial, 62 living donor KTx recipients were assigned to either standard-exposure (SE; n = 32) or low-exposure (LE; n = 30) TACER (Graceptor®, Astellas Pharm Inc.) groups. All patients received basiliximab and mycophenolate mofetil (MMF). The primary outcomes were acute rejection, graft/patient survival, and the secondary outcomes were incidence of cytomegalovirus infection, and de novo donor-specific antibodies (dnDSA) production.The tacrolimus trough level and estimated area under the blood concentration-time curve (eAUC) were significantly higher in SE than in LE (SE vs. LE; 1 year: 5.0 ± 0.9 ng/ml and 206.9 ± 26.8 ng h/ml vs. 3.4 ± 1.0 ng/ml and 153.9 ± 26.4 ng h/ml; 2 years: 4.8 ± 1.0 ng/ml and 204.9 ± 30.1 ng h/ml vs. 3.8 ± 0.9 ng/ml and 164.4 ± 27.0 ng h/ml). In contrast, the dosage and eAUC of MMF did not differ between groups. Two-year graft and patient survival rates were 100% in both groups, and acute rejection rates were 0% and 10% in the SE and LE, respectively (p = 0.11). The mean estimated glomerular filtration rates did not differ between the groups. Cytomegalovirus infection was slightly lower in the LE (SE: 12.5% and LE: 6.7%, p = 0.37). In the LE, four cases of dnDSA were noted within 2 years of transplantation; no case was observed in the SE (p = 0.034).Although the LE TACER regimen showed similar rates of acute rejection, as well as graft and patient survival compared with SE after KTx, LE was significantly more associated with dnDSA. Further investigation of its long-term effect on graft survival is warranted. (University Hospital Medical Information Network Clinical Trials Registry ID: UMIN000033089).

Although many transplant programs have been forced to suspend living donor transplants due to the emergence of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), there are relatively few real-time databases to assess center-level transplant activities. We aimed to delineate the actual impact of COVID-19 on living donor transplant programs and the resumption process in Japan.In a nationwide survey, questionnaires were sent to 32 liver transplant programs that had performed at least more than one case of living donor liver transplantation in 2019 and 132 kidney transplant programs that had performed more than one living donor kidney transplantation in 2018.Thirty-one (96.9%) and 125 (94.7%) liver and kidney transplant programs responded, respectively. In the early pandemic period, 67.7% (21/31) of liver programs and 29.8% (37/125) of kidney programs were able to maintain transplant activities similar to those during the pre-pandemic period. After temporal suspension, 58.1% of kidney programs resumed their transplant activity after the number of local COVID-19 cases peaked. Establishing institutional COVID-19 screening, triage, and therapeutic management protocols was mandatory to resume transplant activity for 64.5% and 67.7% of liver and kidney programs, respectively. In the future wave of COVID-19, 67.7% of liver programs would be affected by institutional COVID-19 intensive care unit-bound patient numbers, and 55.7% of kidney programs would stop if hospital-acquired severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection spreads.THIS NATIONWIDE SURVEY REVEALED FOR THE FIRST TIME HOW LIVING DONOR LIVER AND KIDNEY: transplant programs changed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in a country where living donor transplantations are predominant.

The incidence of allergic reactions in patients with chronic renal failure during plasma exchange using fresh frozen plasma is not well known. We retrospectively reviewed 62 patients who underwent plasma exchange between January 2013 and May 2018. The most common indication for plasma exchange was desensitization/preconditioning for kidney transplant (61.3%, 38/62). The incidence of allergic reactions was significantly higher in patients with chronic renal failure than patients without (57.1% vs. 25.0%, P = 0.029). Also, the incidence of allergic reactions tended to be higher in peritoneal dialysis patients (75%, 3/4) than in hemodialysis (58.8%, 10/17) and preemptive kidney transplant (58%, 11/19). These results suggested the relationship of chronic renal failure and the incidence of allergic reactions in patients undergoing therapeutic plasma exchange using fresh frozen plasma.

BackgroundPreoperative characteristics of living kidney donors are commonly considered during donor selection and postoperative follow-up. However, the impact of preoperative uric acid (UA) levels is poorly documented. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between preoperative serum UA levels and post-donation long-term events and renal function.MethodsThis was a single-center retrospective analysis of 183 living kidney donors. The donors were divided into high (≥5.5 mg/dl) and low (ResultsIn total, 44 donors experienced 52 adverse events over 5 years. The incidence of adverse events within 5 years was significantly higher in the high UA group than in the low UA group (50% vs. 24%,p = 0.003); this was true even after the exclusion of hyperuricemia-related events (p = 0.047). UA emerged as an independent risk factor for adverse events (p = 0.012). Donors with higher UA levels had lower eGFRs after donation, whereas body mass index, hemoglobin A1c, blood pressure, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol did not have any impact on the eGFR.ConclusionsThe findings suggest that preoperative UA levels should be considered during donor selection and postoperative follow-up.

BACKGROUND Adequate renal perfusion at the time of unclamping is important because it has been known to affect outcomes in renal transplantation. Nevertheless, the ideal intraoperative systolic arterial pressure (SAP) has not been well defined. METHODS We performed a retrospective analysis of 106 living donor renal transplants performed at our center from June 2010 to May 2019. We divided the cohort into 2 groups according to our center's goal SAP of ≥150 mm Hg: 57 patients had SAP ≥150 mm Hg and 49 patients had SAP

Background Compensation of contralateral kidney function after living-donor kidney donation is well known, and many predictive factors have been proposed. However, no prediction model has been proposed. This study was performed to establish a tool with which to estimate the degree of compensation of the contralateral kidney after living-donor kidney donation. Methods We retrospectively analyzed 133 living donors for renal transplantation in our institution. We defined a favorable compensation as a post-donation estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) at 1 year (calculated by the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration equation) of > 60% of the pre-donation eGFR. We analyzed the living donors’ clinical characteristics and outcomes. Results The median (range) donor age was 59 (24–79) years, median (range) body mass index was 22.9 (16.8–32.7) kg/m2, and median (range) body surface area was 1.6 (1.3–2.0) m2. All donors were Japanese, and 73% of the donors were biologically related. The median (range) donor pre-donation eGFR was 108.7 (82–144) ml/min/1.73 m2, and the median (range) post-donation eGFR at 1 year was 86.9 (43–143) ml/min/1.73 m2. Eighty-six percent of donors had compensatory hypertrophy. In the univariate analysis, age, female sex, history of hypertension, body surface area, and pre-donation eGFR were significantly associated with hypertrophy (p

We previously reported that allografts from living donors may have pre-existing histopathological damages, defined as the combination of interstitial fibrosis (ci), tubular atrophy (ct), and arteriolar hyalinosis (ah) scores of ≧1, according to the Banff classification. We examined preoperative characteristics to identify whether the degree of these damages was related to metabolic syndrome-related factors of donors. We conducted a single-center cross-sectional analysis including 183 living kidney donors. Donors were divided into two groups: chronic change (ci + ct ≧ 1 &cap, ah ≧ 1, n = 27) and control (n = 156). Preoperative characteristics, including age, sex, blood pressure, hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), aortic calcification index (ACI), and psoas muscle index (PMI), were analyzed. Comparing the groups, the baseline estimated glomerular filtration rate was not significantly different, however, we observed a significant difference for ACI (p = 0.009). HbA1c (p = 0.016) and ACI (p = 0.006) were independent risk factors to predict pre-existing histopathological damages, whereas PMI was not. HbA1c correlated with ct scores (p = 0.035), and ACI correlated with ci (p = 0.005), ct (p = 0.021), and ah (p = 0.017). HbA1c and ACI may serve as preoperative markers for identifying pre-existing damages on the kidneys of living donors.