Creatinine reduction ratio on postoperative day 2 predicts long-term outcomes after living donor kidney transplantation.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the relationship between the creatinine reduction ratio between postoperative days 1 and 2 and post-transplantation clinical outcomes after living donor kidney transplantation. METHODS: Clinical data of patients who underwent living donor kidney transplantation at Jichi Medical University Hospital, Tochigi, Japan, between 2006 and 2019 were retrieved. The creatinine reduction ratio between postoperative days 1 and 2 was calculated based on the formula: (Cre1 - Cre2) × 100/Cre1; patients were then classified into either the slow graft function (creatinine reduction ratio between postoperative days 1 and 2 ≤30%) or immediate graft function (creatinine reduction ratio between postoperative days 1 and 2 >30%) group. We carried out the log-rank test and multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression analyses to assess graft survival and rejection-free survival, and the unpaired t-test and multivariate linear regression to assess post-transplantation estimated glomerular filtration rates. Multivariate analyses used age, sex, dialysis duration, ABO compatibility, donor-specific antibody positivity and medically complex living donors as explanatory variables. RESULTS: Of the 272 patients, 30 and 242 were in the slow graft function and immediate graft function groups, respectively. Multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression analyses showed a significantly higher incidence of overall and death-censored graft loss in the slow graft function group than the immediate graft function group. The frequency of rejection after 1 week post-transplantation did not differ within the groups. Post-transplantation estimated glomerular filtration rates tended to decline earlier in the slow graft function group than in the immediate graft function group; however, the difference was not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: The creatinine reduction ratio between postoperative days 1 and 2 could potentially predict long-term outcomes after living donor kidney transplantation. Using the creatinine reduction ratio between postoperative days 1 and 2 and other conventional indicators might allow accurate risk classification and appropriate therapeutic interventions.

3D printed kidney model could be an important educational tool for residents.

INTRODUCTION: This study aimed to evaluate whether it is useful for junior physicians to use a three-dimensional (3D) kidney model when evaluating the R.E.N.A.L. nephrometry score. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An expert and four urology residents retrospectively evaluated the R.E.N.A.L. nephrometry scores of 64 renal tumors (62 patients) that underwent robot-assisted partial nephrectomy at our hospital. The expert evaluated 64 R.E.N.A.L. nephrometry scores with computed tomography (CT), whereas four residents evaluated 32 cases using CT alone and the other 32 cases using CT and a 3D kidney model. The consistency between the expert and residents was assessed by Cohen's kappa score. Patient-specific 3D kidney models were created in a gird style using a 3D printer based on CT or magnetic resonance imaging of the patient. RESULTS: For all four residents, the accuracy of the overall R.E.N.A.L. nephrometry score was significantly higher with the 3D model and CT than with CT alone (P < .001). Regarding the individual components of the R.E.N.A.L. nephrometry score, the accuracy rates of "E," "N," "A," and "L" scores were higher with the 3D model and CT than with the CT alone (P = .020-.089). CONCLUSION: Patient-specific 3D-printed kidney models could improve the resident's understanding of the renal tumor complexity and could be an important educational tool for residents.

Development of strangulation ileus associated with the ureter of the transplanted kidney 18 years after kidney transplantation.

INTRODUCTION: After kidney transplantation, patients should be treated with caution and monitored for surgical complications. Among the possible surgical complications, strangulation ileus after kidney transplantation is rare. CASE PRESENTATION: A 59-year-old woman who had undergone kidney transplantation at 41 years of age presented to our hospital with lower abdominal pain. She was diagnosed with strangulation ileus and underwent emergency surgery. In the lower right abdomen, the small intestine was compressed by cord-like tissue running from the intraperitoneal space to the retroperitoneal space. We confirmed that the cord-like tissue was the ureter of the transplanted kidney. The necrotic small intestine was resected, and ureter-ureteral anastomosis of the ureter of the transplanted kidney was performed. CONCLUSION: All surgical procedures, including ureteroneocystostomy, require careful attention. The occurrence of some postoperative surgical complications can be prevented by carefully performing the kidney transplantation procedure.

Utilization of a three-dimensional printed kidney model for favorable TRIFECTA achievement in early experience of robot-assisted partial nephrectomy.

BACKGROUND: This retrospective study aimed to investigate whether a three-dimensional (3D) model would improve the achievement of TRIFECTA, which was defined as the absence of perioperative complications and positive surgical margins and a warm ischemia time of <25 minutes, during robot-assisted partial nephrectomy (RAPN). METHODS: Prior to RAPN, a 3D-square type kidney model was prepared and used for all RAPN procedures in patients with T1a renal cell carcinoma (RCC) treated at a single center between March 2016 and April 2019. All RAPN procedures were performed by a single surgeon. RESULTS: The study included 50 patients, of whom 22, 24, and 4 had low-, intermediate-, and high-risk R.E.N.A.L Nephrometry scores, respectively. The TRIFECTA achievement rate was 86.0%, and transfusion or conversion to radical nephrectomy was not required in any of the patients. Only one Clavien-Dindo grade 3 complication was reported-a pseudoaneurysm that required embolism. The TRIFECTA achievement rate was independent of the R.E.N.A.L Nephrometry scores and the surgeon's experience level (25 cases each of early and advanced experience). CONCLUSIONS: The 3D model contributed to the achievement of TRIFECTA during RAPN performed by a less-experienced surgeon. These findings should be further evaluated in studies involving a larger number of cases and surgeons.