Transplantation

Use of Kidneys From High-Risk Donors Drops

John Schieszer March 11, 2010

The trend could be a response to cases of transplant-related HIV transmission in November 2007.
 

Live Kidney Donation Does Not Shorten Survival

Jody A. Charnow March 10, 2010

Within 12 months of surgery, their death rate was similar to that of healthy controls, study finds.
 

Wyeth Makes Drug Monitoring Changes for Sirolimus

Jody A. Charnow March 02, 2010

Wyeth has notified health care professionals of changes to the Rapamune (sirolimus) prescribing information related to changes in the performance of an immunoassay used for therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) of the medication, according to the FDA.
 

Expanding the Kidney Donor Pool

Heidi M. Schaefer, MD March 02, 2010

Strategies include the use of non-standard-criteria kidney donation and kidney-exchange programs.
 

ECD Kidneys Are Underused in Older Patients

John Schieszer February 22, 2010

One third of those who can benefit are not waitlisted for the organs.
 

Kidney Allocation Policy May Need Rethinking

John Schieszer February 12, 2010

De-emphasis on HLA matching could lead to worse outcomes in highly sensitized patients,
 

Transplants Can Proceed Despite Substance Abuse

John Schieszer February 03, 2010

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla.—Substance abuse by renal transplant recipients does not significantly affect graft and patient outcomes, according to new data presented at the American Society of Transplantation 10th Annual State of the Art Winter Symposium.
 

Obesity Need Not Rule Out Renal Transplants

John Schieszer February 03, 2010

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla.— Elevated BMI in renal transplant recipients does not appear to impact early graft function and the risk of acute rejection, according to study findings presented here at the American Society of Transplantation 10th Annual State of the Art Winter Symposium.
 

Rituximab May Increase Infection Risk in Kidney Transplant Patients

Jody A. Charnow January 08, 2010

Use of rituximab in kidney transplant patients is associated with a high risk of infections, according to a French study. In addition, rituximab used in combination with antithymocyte globulin is associated with an increased risk of infection-related death.
 

Kidney Disease Patients Older than 70 Benefit from Renal Transplants

Jody A. Charnow December 30, 2009

They have significantly prolonged survival compared with those who remain on dialysis.
 

Earlier May Not Be Better For Preemptive Transplant

Jody A. Charnow December 17, 2009

SAN DIEGO—Pre-dialysis transplant recipients with a high level of kidney function do not appear to benefit from their transplant more than pre-dialysis recipients with a low level of kidney function, data show.
 

Transplant Get-Togethers May Boost Donations

John Schieszer December 17, 2009

SAN DIEGO—Get-togethers with a kidney disease patients' family and friends may improve their willingness to consider donation, according to a new report.
 

Delayed Graft Function, Vitamin D Deficiency Linked

Jody A. Charnow December 15, 2009

Renal transplant recipients who are deficient in 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D are at higher risk of delayed graft function (DGF), according to a Polish study published in Transplantation Proceedings (2009;41:3002-2005).
 

Sleep Apnea May Raise Cardiovascular Risk in Kidney Transplant Patients

Tasheema Prince November 23, 2009

Kidney transplant patients who suffer from obstructive sleep apnea have an increased risk for developing heart-related complications, according to a study published in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (2009; published online ahead of print).
 

Flu Vaccine Advised for Transplant Patients

John Schieszer November 19, 2009

Influenza should be prevented in renal transplant recipients because it can cause allograft rejection.
 

Alendronate May Benefit Long-Term Transplant Survivors

John Schieszer November 19, 2009

DENVER—Anti-resorptive therapy with alendronate may suppress bone turnover in long-term renal transplant survivors even when intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH) is elevated, according to Japanese researchers.
 

Donor Size Not An Issue For Children

Jill Stein November 19, 2009

Adult kidneys were transplanted successfully into very small recipients.
 

Diagnosing Acute Kidney Rejection through Urinary Proteome Analysis

John Schieszer November 01, 2009

It may be possible to detect acute allograft rejection in kidney transplant patients by urinary proteome analysis, according to a new German study that was presented at ASN's Renal Week 2009.
 

Risk Factors for New-Onset Diabetes in Pediatric Transplant Patients Identified

John Schieszer November 01, 2009

Among pediatric renal transplant recipients, increased age and having a very high or very low BMI, steroid use at the time of hospital discharge are three independent factors associated with an increased risk of new onset diabetes, according to new data presented at ASN's Renal Week 2009.
 

Intensified Dosing Regimen May Lower Rejection Rate

John Schieszer November 01, 2009

An intensified-dosing regimen of enteric-coated mycophenolate sodium in combination with basiliximab and standard doses of cyclosporine may result in a lower rate of rejection without compromising safety and tolerability, according to new data presented at ASN's Renal Week 2009.
 

High-Dose Multivitamin Does Not Reduce CVD Outcomes in Transplant Patients

John Schieszer November 01, 2009

Treatment of stable renal transplant recipients with a regimen of high-dose folic acid and vitamins B6 and B12 lowers total homocysteine levels better than a low-dose multivitamin containing no folic acid. However, it does not reduce cardiovascular disease outcomes or total mortality in this patient population, according to a study presented at ASN's Renal Week 2009.
 

Switching Immunosuppressants May Reduce Cancer Risk in Kidney Transplant Recipients

John Schieszer October 31, 2009

Switching to sirolimus from a calcineurin inhibitor may reduce the high risk of skin cancer after kidney transplantation, according to a new multi-centered trial conducted in Australia, New Zealand and the United States that was presented at ASN's Renal Week 2009.
 

Active Surveillance for BK Virus May Help Minimize Nephropathy in Kidney Transplant Recipients

John Schieszer October 31, 2009

Active surveillance for BK virus with prompt reduction in immunosuppression therapy may help minimize graft loss due to BK nephropathy, according to researchers who presented their study at ASN's Renal Week 2009.
 

Survival Better on PD than HD in the First Year After Renal Graft Failure

John Schieszer October 31, 2009

SAN DIEGO—Following renal transplant failure, patients starting peritoneal dialysis (PD) have better survival in the first year than patients starting on hemodialysis (HD), but the survival advantage lessens with time, British resesarchers reported at the American Society of Nephrology's Renal Week conference.
 

Kidney Transplants Generally Safe for Lupus Patients

John Schieszer October 31, 2009

Contrary to previous studies, lupus patients who receive kidney transplants rarely develop lupus nephritis in their new allograft, according to a study presented at ASN's Renal Week conference.
 

Higher iPTH Does Not Hike Risk of Death, Cardiovascular Events

Eric Butterman October 30, 2009

Higher intact parathyroid hormone levels are not associated with all-cause mortality and cardiovascular events in CKD patients not yet on dialysis, researchers have concluded in a study that was presented at Renal Week 2009.
 

Study: Cardiovascular Risk Reduction Lacking in Kidney Transplant Patients

John Schieszer October 30, 2009

Despite the fact that cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in kidney transplant patients, overall utilization of cardioprotective drugs—such as antihypertensive agents and statins—is low in this high-risk population, Hungarian researchers reported at ASN's Renal Week 2009.
 

Superior Efficacy Reported with Enteric-Coated Mycophenolate

John Schieszer October 30, 2009

Results from a pooled analysis suggest that enteric-coated mycophenolate is more effective than mycophenolate in renal transplant patients, according to a study presented at Renal Week 2009.
 

Foreign Renal Transplants Measure Up to Those Performed in the U.S.

John Schieszer October 30, 2009

A new study suggests that kidneys transplanted abroad have comparable function to kidneys transplanted in the United States more than five years after surgery. The study was presented at ASN's Renal Week 2009 in San Diego.
 

Donor Race May Impact Survival in Kidney Transplant Patients

John Schieszer October 30, 2009

SAN DIEGO—Kidney transplants within the same races appear to result in better patient survival than transplants between races, according to study findings presented at the American Society of Nephrology's Renal Week conference.