RESULTS OF RENAL-TRANSPLANTATION USING PEDIATRIC CADAVER DONORS

  • 1 January 1979
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 85  (5) , 504-508
Abstract
To determine the results of transplantation using pediatric cadaver donors, a retrospective analysis of a series of 502 renal transplant recipients was carried out. Methods of procurement, preservation, recipient selection and immunosuppresssive regimen were similar for all patients. Recipients (65) were approximately equally divided into 3 groups whose donors were younger than 5 yr old, 6-10 yr old and 11-15 yr. These 3 groups then were compared with each other and to a randomly selected representative group of recipients whose donors were adults (16 yr or older) for the following parameters: actuarial graft and patient survival, causes of graft failure and patient death, level of serum creatinine in currently functioning grafts, and recipient age. There were no statistically significant differences between groups for any parameter except that the mean age of recipients was approximately 16 yr for the donors up to 5 yr old and was between 31 and 36 yr for the other donor age groups (P = 0.01). Brain-dead pediatric patients of any age should be considered to be potential cadaveric kidney donors. Exclusion of these patients is very wasteful and also is unnecessary since results of transplantation equal to those obtained with adult donors can be expected. Technical graft failures should not be more frequent than with adult kidney; there is no need to modify the basic surgical technique for small kidneys in order to achieve this.