Kidney transplant through living donation is the transplant option that offers the best long-term results in this type of procedure that allows the replacement of kidneys that have stopped working in a person, with more advantages than kidney transplant through a deceased donor. However, it has been described that the expected benefits in patients receiving these transplants who are older (elderly) may be less than in young recipients.
With the aim of shedding light on this health field, nephrologists and researchers from various hospitals in Catalonia have carried out a study that has shown that kidney transplantation through a living donor is not only an effective technique in patients over 60 years of age , but also provides significant benefits in terms of survival and renal function of transplant recipients. Likewise, it points out the importance of offering adequate information on the different kidney transplant options that a patient has, including living donors, so that they can make the best choice in their case.
This scientific work, which has been presented at the annual Congress of the Spanish Society of Nephrology (SEN), has had the participation of professionals from the Nephrology services of the Barcelona Vall d’Hebron hospitals, the Hospital Clínic, the Hospital Bellvitge University Hospital, the Hospital del Mar, the Germans Trias i Pujol University Hospital, the Puigvert Foundation and the Catalan Transplant Organization.
This is a retrospective observational study of kidney transplant patients over 60 years of age from the Catalan Registry of Renal Patients carried out during the period 2013-2020, through which the results were compared between transplant recipients from a living donor, from a cadaver donor in brain death and donor in controlled asystole. During this period, 2,094 first kidney transplants were performed in Catalan patients over 60 years of age (1,246 from brain-dead donors, 620 from controlled asystole donors, and 228 from living donors).
Improved survival and kidney function
The results of the study showed that graft and patient survival, as well as renal function at one year of follow-up, is better in recipients of a living-donor kidney transplant than in those transplanted with the other procedures, thus confirming the efficacy and safety of living donor transplantation in elderly renal patients. In addition, the authors of the research concluded that recipients should be adequately informed about all available transplant techniques and their advantages and benefits so that they can make the best decision.
The study points out the importance of offering adequate information on the different kidney transplant options that a patient has, including living donors, so that they can make the best choice in their case.
This study was presented at the 52nd National Congress of the SEN, held in November in Granada, the largest meeting of Nephrology in Spain in which more than 1,200 nephrologists and national and international experts met to discuss the latest advances, research and strategies for better prevention, diagnosis and treatment of kidney diseases, especially Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD), as well as improving the quality of life of patients.
In addition, the SEN Congress served one more year as a loudspeaker to publicize and sensitize Spanish society and public opinion about the importance and repercussion of CKD, a pathology that, despite affecting almost seven million Spaniards and having a strong impact on the quality of life of patients, continues to be a great unknown for the majority of the population, also representing a significant burden for the health system.
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