Transpl Int. 2007; published online ahead of print
Preemptive ganciclovir treatment of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection in simultaneous pancreas-kidney (SPK) transplant recipients appears to be associated with good long-term outcomes, German researchers report.
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Nada Rayes, MD, and collaborators at Charité University Medicine Berlin, retrospectively reviewed data on 94 SPK recipients treated preemptively for asymptomatic CMV antigenemia with IV ganciclovir for 14 days. After one, three, and five years, patient survival rates were 98%, 97%, and 94%, respectively. Renal graft survival rates were 96%, 94%, and 88%, and the pancreas graft survival rates were 88%, 85%, and 82%.
Symptomatic CMV infections oc-curred in 51% of patients and CMV syndrome occurred in 16%. In addition, 38% of patients with CMV infection experienced a recurrence, according to researchers. CMV had no impact on patient or graft survival, occurrence of acute or chronic rejection, and bacterial infections, the authors reported.
