Management of pre-renal transplant secondary hyperparathyroidism: parathyroidectomy versus cinacalcet.

Background: Secondary hyperparathyroidism is a common consequence of end-stage renal disease. Despite the efficacy of kidney transplantation in treating renal failure, many transplant recipients still suffer from persistent or tertiary hyperparathyroidism. Furthermore, the impact of secondary hyperparathyroidism therapy choices on other renal transplant outcomes is poorly understood. Methods: We retrieved the clinical data of 334 patients who received a kidney allograft between January 2007 and December 2014 at the Sheffield Teaching Hospitals, NHS Foundation Trust, United Kingdom. We identified three groups: parathyroidectomy group (34 patients), including patients who had parathyroidectomy before transplantation; cinacalcet group (31 patients), including patients who received cinacalcet before transplantation; and control group (269 patients), including patients who receive a transplant in the same period but did not have any evidence of hyperparathyroidism. We reviewed the demographic data, biochemical parameters and graft survival of all groups. Results: Patients who underwent parathyroidectomy before transplantation had significantly better post-transplant calcium and parathyroid hormone levels than patients in the cinacalcet group (p=0.003). In addition, a significantly lower number of patients had tertiary hyperparathyroidism in the parathyroidectomy group than in the cinacalcet group at 1 year of follow-up (p=0.001). However, short-term and long-term graft survival was comparable in all groups. Conclusions: Renal allograft survival was comparable in all groups. However, tertiary hyperparathyroidism was less likely to occur in patients who underwent parathyroidectomy than in those who were administered cinacalcet.

COVID-19 in Renal Transplant Recipients: Case Series and a Brief Review of Current Evidence.

By April 26, 2020, infections related to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) affected people from 210 countries and caused 203,818 reported deaths worldwide. A few studies discussed the outcome of COVID-19 in kidney transplant recipients. This short series demonstrates our experience in managing COVID-19 disease in renal transplant patients in the absence of strong evidence. We report 8 cases of kidney transplant recipients infected with COVID-19 (median age = 48.5 years; range = 21-71 years), including 4 males and 4 females. The most frequently associated comorbidity was hypertension. The most common presenting features were fever and cough. The main radiological investigation was a portable chest X-ray. Other common features included lymphopenia, high C-reactive protein, and a very high ferritin level. Overall, 1 patient was managed as an outpatient, the remaining 7 required hospital admission, 1 of them referred to the intensive therapy unit. Management included supportive treatment (intravenous fluid therapy, monitoring renal function, and symptomatic treatment with or without ward-based oxygen therapy depending on oxygen saturation) and discontinuation of the antiproliferative immunosuppressive drugs. Seven patients recovered and discharged home to self-isolate. One patient required intensive care treatment and mechanical ventilation. Supportive treatment could be sufficient for the management or to be tried first. We also found that short hospital stay with self-isolation on discharge reduces the burden on the health service and protect the staff and the public.

Impact of Sex Disparities on Outcomes of Living-Donor Kidney Transplant in Egypt: Data of 979 Patients.

OBJECTIVES: Renal transplant is the criterion standard for treatment of end-stage renal disease. The effects of disparities between men and women on renal transplant outcomes have been evaluated in many studies but with debatable results. It has been suggested that female kidney donors have poor outcomes after transplant compared with male kidney donors, especially when implanted in a male recipient. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effects of sex on living-donor kidney transplant outcome. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The data of 979 patients who underwent living-donor kidney transplant from January 2000 to December 2010 at a single center were reviewed retrospectively. The patients were divided into 4 groups according to recipient and donor sex: male donor-to-male recipient (n = 307), male donor-to-female recipient (n = 132), female donor-to-male recipient (n = 411), and female donor-to-female recipient (n = 129). We compared the demographic characteristics, posttransplant rejection and complications, and graft and patient survival rates among the groups. RESULTS: Male recipients were older than female recipients, whereas male donors were younger than female donors (P < .001). No statistically significant differences were shown regarding recipient body mass index, ischemia time and time to diuresis, and acute and chronic rejection rates between the groups. Graft (P = .947) and patient (P = .421) survival rates were comparable between groups. CONCLUSIONS: Donor and recipient sex had no significant effect on outcomes of living-donor renal allograft recipients.