Randomized clinical trial to determine the effectiveness of CO-oximetry and anti-smoking brief advice in a cohort of kidney transplant patients who smoke.

Background: measure the efficacy of exhaled carbon monoxide (CO) measurement plus brief advisory sessions to reduce smoking exposure and smoking behaviour in kidney transplant recipients. Methods: Randomized, controlled, open-label clinical trial at a Spanish hospital.Smoking kidney transplant recipients giving their consent to participate were randomized to control (brief advice, n=63) or intervention group (brief advisory session plus measuring exhaled CO, n=59). Measurements: Sociodemographic characteristics, cardiovascular risk factors, treatment, rejection episodes, infections, self-reported smoking, drug use, level of dependence and motivation to stop smoking (Fagerström's and Richmond's test) and stage of change (Prochaska and DiClemente's Stages). Efficacy was assessed at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months as: cotinine test, CO levels in exhaled air, nicotine dependence, motivational stages of change, motivation to stop smoking, pattern of tobacco use and smoking cessation rates. Logistic regression models were computed. Results: At 12 months of follow-up, differences were found in exhaled CO between the intervention and control group(6.1±6.8vs.10.2±9.7ppm;p=0.028). Carboxyhemoglobin levels were lower in the intervention group as well as the positive cotinine test (1.2±1.2%vs.2.0±2.4%;p=0.039),(53.4%vs.74.2%). At 12 months, intervention reduces the probability of a positive urine test by 28%. Conclusions: Co-oximetry is a clinically relevant intervention for reduction of tobacco exposure in kidney transplant recipients.

ABO-incompatible living-donor kidney transplantation: Study of 48 patients after desensitisation. / Trasplante renal de donante vivo ABO incompatible. Estudio de 48 pacientes tras desensibilización.

BACKGROUND: ABO-incompatible living-donor kidney transplantation was regarded as an absolute contraindication. However, it has been carried out for years with good outcomes. OBJECTIVE: Our aim was to show the results obtained with this technique in our hospital. METHODS: Forty-eight patients with a mean age of 50.9±10.9 years were included. Follow-up was 44.6±30.9 months. Conditioning: rituximab 375mg/m2, tacrolimus, mycophenolate mofetil or mycophenolate sodium, prednisone, plasmapheresis/immunoadsorption and intravenous immunoglobulin. Accepted IgG and IgM titres for transplantation:<1:8. RESULTS: Pre-process IgG titre 1:124±1:140, IgM titre 1:77±1:55. After 6±3 sessions, IgG decreased to<1:8 in 47 patients and to<1:16 in one. IgM was<1:8 in all cases. Twenty-four patients (50%) had haematoma, 7 re-intervention (14.6%), 29 (60%) required transfusion. At 5 years, acute rejection had occurred in 5 cases (8.7%), CMV infection in 9 (19.7%), BK viraemia in 5 (12.4%), post-transplant diabetes in 10 (23.4%) and lymphocele in 3 (6.4%). Patient survival was 97.1% at 5 years and graft survival 95.7% at one year and 93% at 5 years. Causes of graft loss: thrombosis (n=1); mixed rejection (n=1); and death (n=2). Serum creatinine levels were 1.4±0.4mg/dl at one and 3 years and 1.3±0.3mg/dl at 5 years. Proteinuria was 0.2±0.2g/24h at one, 3 and 5 years. CONCLUSIONS: ABO-incompatible living-donor kidney transplantation after conditioning with rituximab, plasmapheresis/immunoadsorption and immunoglobulins is a valid option offering excellent outcomes. There is a low incidence of acute rejection and no increase in infectious complications. An increased tendency for postoperative bleeding was found.

Incidence of cardiovascular events and associated risk factors in kidney transplant patients: a competing risks survival analysis.

BACKGROUND: The high prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors among the renal transplant population accounts for increased mortality. The aim of this study is to determine the incidence of cardiovascular events and factors associated with cardiovascular events in these patients. METHODS: An observational ambispective follow-up study of renal transplant recipients (n = 2029) in the health district of A Coruña (Spain) during the period 1981-2011 was completed. Competing risk survival analysis methods were applied to estimate the cumulative incidence of developing cardiovascular events over time and to identify which characteristics were associated with the risk of these events. Post-transplant cardiovascular events are defined as the presence of myocardial infarction, invasive coronary artery therapy, cerebral vascular events, new-onset angina, congestive heart failure, rhythm disturbances, peripheral vascular disease and cardiovascular disease and death. The cause of death was identified through the medical history and death certificate using ICD9 (390-459, except: 427.5, 435, 446, 459.0). RESULTS: The mean age of patients at the time of transplantation was 47.0 ± 14.2 years; 62% were male. 16.5% had suffered some cardiovascular disease prior to transplantation and 9.7% had suffered a cardiovascular event. The mean follow-up period for the patients with cardiovascular event was 3.5 ± 4.3 years. Applying competing risk methodology, it was observed that the accumulated incidence of the event was 5.0% one year after transplantation, 8.1% after five years, and 11.9% after ten years. After applying multivariate models, the variables with an independent effect for predicting cardiovascular events are: male sex, age of recipient, previous cardiovascular disorders, pre-transplant smoking and post-transplant diabetes. CONCLUSIONS: This study makes it possible to determine in kidney transplant patients, taking into account competitive events, the incidence of post-transplant cardiovascular events and the risk factors of these events. Modifiable risk factors are identified, owing to which, changes in said factors would have a bearing of the incidence of events.

A randomized clinical trial to determine the effectiveness of CO-oximetry and anti-smoking brief advice in a cohort of kidney transplant patients who smoke: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: The cardiovascular risk in renal transplant patients is increased in patients who continue to smoke after transplantation. The aim of the study is to measure the effectiveness of exhaled carbon monoxide (CO) measurement plus brief advisory sessions, in comparison to brief advice, to reduce smoking exposure and smoking behavior in kidney transplant recipients who smoke. The effectiveness will be measured by: (1) abandonment of smoking, (2) increase in motivation to stop smoking, and (3) reduction in the number of cigarettes smoked per day. DESIGN: a randomized, controlled, open clinical trial with blinded evaluation. SCOPE: A Coruña Hospital (Spain), reference to renal transplantation in the period 2012-2015. INCLUSION CRITERIA: renal transplant patients who smoke in the precontemplation, contemplation or preparation stages according to the Prochaska and DiClemente's Stages of Change model, and who give their consent to participate. EXCLUSION CRITERIA: smokers attempting to stop smoking, patients with terminal illness or mental disability that prevents them from participating. RANDOMIZATION: patients will be randomized to the control group (brief advisory session) or the intervention group (brief advisory session plus measuring exhaled CO). The sample target size is n = 112, with 56 patients in each group. Allowing for up to 10 % loss to follow-up, this would provide 80 % power to detect a 13 % difference in attempting to give up smoking outcomes at a two-tailed significance level of 5 %. MEASUREMENTS: sociodemographic characteristics, cardiovascular risk factors, treatment, rejection episodes, infections, self-reported smoking habit, drug use, level of dependence (the Fagerström test), stage of change (Prochaska and DiClemente's Stages of Change model), and motivation to giving up smoking (the Richmond test). RESPONSE: the effectiveness will be evaluated every 3, 6, 9 and 12 months as: pattern of tobacco use (self-reported tobacco use), smoking cessation rates, carbon monoxide (CO) levels in exhaled air measured by CO-oximetry, urinary cotinine tests, nicotine dependence (Fagerström test), motivational stages of change (Prochaska and DiClemente's stages) and motivation to stop smoking (the Richmond test). ANALYSIS: descriptive statistics and linear/logistic multiple regression models will be performed. Clinical relevance will be measured as relative risk reduction, absolute risk reduction and the number needed to treat. ETHICS: informed consent of the patients and Ethical Review Board was obtained (code 2011/061). DISCUSSION: Tobacco is a modifiable risk factor that increase the risk of morbidity and mortality in kidney transplant recipients. If effectiveness of CO-oximetry is confirmed to reduce tobacco exposure, we would have an intervention that is easy to use, low cost and with great implications about cardiovascular risk prevention in these patients. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN16615772 . EudraCT number: 2015-002009-12.

Association of bladder adenocarcinoma and BK virus infection in a pancreatico-renal transplant recipient.

Viral infection has been related to post-transplantation tumour development, particularly Epstein-Barr virus, human papillomavirus, hepatitis B and C viruses, and herpes virus 8. Recently, BK virus (BKV) has emerged as an important cause of tumour formation in solid organ transplant recipients. BKV oncogenic potential relates to the ability to inactivate the functions of tumour suppression proteins p53 and pRB family, and induction of chromosomal aberrations. We report a case of urinary bladder adenocarcinoma in a pancreatico-renal transplant recipient which was diagnosed 2 years after BKV infection. Immunohistochemical staining for SV-40 was positive in neoplastic cells but negative in non-neoplastic cells.