Nephrology. 2007; published online ahead of print
Older age and hypertension increase the risk of renal impairment among live kidney donors, according to South Korean researchers.
Continue Reading
Soon Bae Kim, MD, and colleagues at the University of Ulsan College of Medicine in Seoul studied 104 individuals who underwent open donor nephrectomy who had follow-up records for 50 months or more. At the final follow-up, 26 patients had a glomerular filtration rate (GFR) less than 60 mL/min per 1.73 m2 (CKD-GFR group) and 78 had normal renal function. GFR was calculated using the abbreviated Modification of Diet in Renal Disease equation.
At baseline, the CKD-GFR group was significantly older than the normal group (47 vs. 41
years), and hypertension (BP above 140/90 mm Hg) was significantly more common in the CKD-GFR group (15% vs. 2%). In the CKD-GFR group, 31% and 15% had hypertension and proteinuria, respectively, at final follow-up, compared with only 8% and 0% of the normal group. The average age at final follow-up was 55 years in the CKD-GFR group versus 49 years in the normal group.
At baseline, age and hypertension were independent risk factors for a GFR below 60 mL/min per 1.73 m2 at final follow-up. Each one-year increment in age was associated with a 6% increase in the risk; hypertension increased the risk nearly eightfold.
The researchers concluded that older kidney donors and those with hypertension “need to be more carefully evaluated in pre-donation and be followed more regularly.”
