Early tocilizumab treatment was associated with survival benefits in hospitalized kidney transplants with severe COVID-19 infection: A prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: The potential of Tocilizumab (TCZ) in preventing the cytokine storm caused by COVID-19 infection has been observed, while the survival benefits were inconclusive in solid-organ transplant recipients. We aimed to explore whether the timing of TCZ administration holds significance in the clinical course of COVID-19 infection and identify predicative factors of TCZ efficacy. METHODS: We conducted a prospective cohort study between December 2022, and January 2023. Early TCZ use referred to administration within 6 days after symptoms onset, while late TCZ use indicated administration after 6 days. The primary endpoint was 30-day mortality. RESULTS: Twenty-seven kidney transplant recipients with severe COVID-19 infection were enrolled, with 10 in the early use group and 17 in the late use group. In the early use group, ferritin, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), C-reactive protein (CRP) and brain natriuretic peptide(BNP) levels had shown significant inhibitions comparing to the late use group, and those inflammatory cytokines demonstrated a noticeable decreasing trend after TCZ administration, whereas only CRP levels decreased in the late use group. The Kaplan-Meier survival curve demonstrated that the early use group had a higher likelihood of survival (P = 0.0078). Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) analyses revealed that the time from symptoms to TCZ use (AUC: 0.645), LDH (AUC: 0.803), CRP (AUC: 0.787), and IL-6 (AUC: 0.725) were potential predictive factors of TCZ efficacy. TCZ use within 6 days from symptoms onset, with CRP < 73.5 mg/L, LDH < 435.5 IU/L, and IL-6 < 103.5 pg/mL, had higher survival rates (P = 0.008, P = 0.009, P < 0.001, P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: This study highlights the survival benefits of early TCZ use and the predicative role of cytokines levels in predicting TCZ efficacy in kidney transplant recipients with severe COVID-19 infection.

Ex Vivo Surgical Removal Versus Conservative Management of Small Asymptomatic Kidney Stones in Living Donors and Long-term Kidney Transplant Outcomes.

BACKGROUND: Donors with small asymptomatic kidney stones have been increasingly accepted because of organ shortages and advances in endoscopic urology. This study aims to evaluate and compare long-term living-donor kidney transplant outcomes following ex vivo surgical removal versus conservative management of donors' gifted asymptomatic stones. METHODS: Between January 2007 and December 2021, 119 kidney transplant recipients received stone-bearing kidneys, divided into the removal group (N = 63) and observation group (N = 56). We evaluated posttransplant stone events, urinary infections, kidney function, delayed graft function, length of hospital stay, and survival outcomes. RESULTS: After a median follow-up of 75.5 mo, the removal group had a 10.9% lower absolute incidence of stone events (7/56 [12.5%] versus 1/63 [1.6%]; hazard ratio, 0.08; 95% confidence interval, 0.01-0.77) and a 14.3% lower absolute incidence of urinary infections (16/56 [28.6%] versus 9/63 [14.3%]; hazard ratio, 0.42; 95% confidence interval, 0.19-0.95) than the observation group. The removal group also showed superior kidney graft function. The 2 groups had comparable length of hospital stay (11.0 versus 12.0 d; P = 0.297) and exhibited similar delayed graft function incidence (1/56 [1.8%] versus 2/63 [3.2%]; P = 1.000) and urinary stricture incidence (1/56 [1.8%] versus 3/63 [4.8%]; P = 0.621). Graft survival (P = 0.350) and patient survival (P = 0.260) were comparable between 2 groups. Subgroup analyses in recipients who received kidneys with stones <4 mm also reported similar results. CONCLUSIONS: Ex vivo surgical removal might outperform conservative management for donors' gifted asymptomatic kidney stones, improving long-term transplant outcomes and reducing stone events without increasing perioperative complications, even for stones <4 mm.

Risk for Donor-Derived Syphilis after Kidney Transplantation, China, 2007-2022.

To evaluate the risk of acquiring syphilis from a donated kidney, we evaluated kidney transplantation pairs from West China Hospital, Sichuan, China, during 2007-2022. Donor-derived syphilis was rare. Risk may be higher if donors have active syphilis and may be reduced if recipients receive ceftriaxone.

Was antiviral prophylaxis necessary after kidney transplantation utilizing HBcAb+ donors? A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Current guidelines lack consensus on whether antiviral prophylaxes should be administered after kidney transplantation from HBcAb+ donors. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the incidence and risk factors of de novo HBV (DNH) infection, as well as graft and patient survival. METHODS: We searched PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library up to December 31, 2023. We included relevant studies that assessed clinical outcomes following transplantation utilizing HBcAb+ kidneys. Summary measures of effect and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for prevalence, risk factors, as well as graft and patient survival were estimated using random-effects meta-analysis. RESULTS: Thirteen studies were included for the final analysis. The DNH incidence was at 0.36% (9/2516) with low heterogeneity (I2 = 6%). HBsAb+ recipients (OR: 0.78, 95%CI: 0.25-2.38), HBcAb+ recipients (OR: 3.11, 95%CI: 0.91-10.66, P = 0.071), and recipients not receiving any antiviral prophylaxis (OR: 1.26, 95%CI: 0.15-10.58) were not associated with higher DNH risk. Specifically, HBsAb-/HBcAb+ recipients had the highest DNH incidence (4.65%), followed by HBsAb-/HBcAb- (0.49%), HBsAb+/HBcAb- recipients (0.45%), and HBsAb+/HBcAb+ (0%). Furthermore, recipients receiving HBcAb+ kidneys had comparable graft survival (HR: 1.06, 95%CI: 0.94-1.19, P = 0.55) and patient survival (HR:1.16, 95%CI: 0.98-1.38, P = 0.090) compared with recipients receiving HBcAb- kidneys. CONCLUSION: Kidney transplantation utilizing HBcAb+ kidneys contributed to comparable graft and patient survival with an extremely low risk of HBV transmission. Antiviral prophylaxes may only be administered in HBsAb-/HBcAb+ recipients.

Treatment of donors' asymptomatic small kidney stones and post-transplant outcomes: a meta-analysis.

Kidney donors with asymptomatic small kidney stones were increasingly accepted in kidney transplantation (KT) due to organ shortage and advances in endoscopic urology. However, recipients' clinical outcomes using these donors remained unclear. We conducted a meta-analysis to summarize transplant outcomes using these donors with asymptomatic small kidney stones. Finally, 15 retrospective studies were included. The prevalence of asymptomatic small kidney stones was 5.3% (95%CI 3.5-7.8%). After transplantation, low incidence of urinary fistula (0%, 95%CI 0-1.0%), obstruction (0%, 95%CI 0-1.1%), relapse of kidney graft stone (0.3%, 95%CI 0-2.5%), and delayed graft function (0.6%, 95%CI 0-3.5%) was reported. Pooled serum creatinine was 1.3 (95%CI 1.2-1.5) mg/dl and 1.4 (95%CI 1.2-1.6) mg/dl at post-transplant 1 month and 1 year, respectively. Notably, we observed numerically higher relapse rate after conservative management (1.8% [0-9.2%] vs 0% [0-1.8%]) but numerically higher DGF rate after surgical removal of asymptomatic stones (1.8% [0-7.0%] vs 0% [0-1.9%]). Overall, short-term transplant outcomes using kidneys with asymptomatic small stones were acceptable. However, long-term transplant outcomes remained unexplored. Well-designed prospective studies are also needed to compare the efficacy of conservative management with surgical removal of "donors' gifted" asymptomatic kidney stones.

Expanding the donor pool: Kidney transplantation from serum HBV DNA or HBeAg-positive donors to HBsAg-negative recipients.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: HBsAg-positive (HBsAg[+]) donors are rarely accepted for kidney transplantation (KT), especially when the donor is also HBV DNA-positive (HBV DNA[+]) or HBeAg-positive (HBeAg[+]) serologically. This study aimed to report kidney transplant outcomes from HBsAg(+) donors to HBsAg(-) recipients. METHODS: Consecutive cases were retrospectively identified from 1 July 2017 to 31 December 2020. KTs from HBsAg(-)/HBcAb-positive (HBcAb[+]) donors to HBcAb(-) recipients were selected as the control group. The primary outcomes were de novo HBV infection (DNH), graft and patient survival. RESULTS: We identified 105 HBsAg(-) recipients who received HBsAg(+) kidneys and 516 HBcAb(-) recipients who received HBcAb(+) kidneys. A higher DNH rate was observed after receiving HBsAg(+) kidneys than after receiving HBcAb(+) kidneys after a median follow-up of 23.0 months (4/105[3.8%] vs. 2/516[0.4%], p = .009). All four infected recipients receiving HBsAg(+) kidneys had HBsAg clearance after treatment. Graft and patient survival were comparable between the groups (p = .630, p = .910). The DNH rates were 0/22(0%), 3/70(4.3%) and 1/13(7.7%) after receiving HBsAg(+), HBV DNA(+) and HBeAg(+) kidneys, respectively (p = .455). The DNH rate was lower if the donor had received antiviral treatment (4/42[9.5%] vs. 0/63[0%], p = .023). HBsAb(-) recipients had a higher DNH incidence than HBsAb(+) recipients (3/25[12.0%] vs. 1/80[1.3%], p = .041). CONCLUSIONS: The use of HBsAg(+) donors contributed to comparable graft and patient survival, but HBV DNA(+) or HBeAg(+) donors and HBsAb(-) recipients maybe associated with a higher risk of HBV infection. These findings help expand the donor pool and emphasize the role of donor antiviral treatment and recipient HBV immunity in establishing optimal prophylactic regimens.

Laparoscopic Living Donor Nephrectomy in a Donor With Situs Inversus Totalis: It is Not a Contraindication to Kidney Transplant.

Situs inversus totalis (SIT) is a rare anatomic anomaly representing 180° inversion of all internal organs. We report a case of laparoscopic living donor nephrectomy in a donor with SIT. A 55-year-old man volunteered to provide a living kidney source for his son. The donor was in good physical condition, with no clinical history of obesity, hypertension, diabetes, and other abnormalities. Preoperative X-ray thoracic and abdominal scans showed that the donor had a total organ transposition inversus. Computed tomographic renal vascular three-dimensional reconstruction scan showed that the patient had 2 left renal arteries and 1 right renal artery. All data collected comply with the Helsinki Congress and the Declaration of Istanbul. We chose to perform a transabdominal route laparoscopic living donor nephrectomy of the right kidney. The donor did not experience operation-related complications and was discharged on the fourth postoperative day. The recipient did not have a rejection reaction, and the recipient recovered successfully. This case illustrates that laparoscopic living donor nephrectomy is fully feasible in this population.

Psoriasis and risk of chronic kidney diseases: A population-based cross-sectional study and Mendelian randomization analysis.

BACKGROUND: Conflicting results have been reported regarding the association between psoriasis and risk of chronic kidney diseases (CKD). Furthermore, the causal nature of the possible association remains unexplored. METHODS: We conducted a population-based cross-sectional study using data from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Logistic regression analyses were conducted to estimate potential association between psoriasis and CKD risk. Further, we evaluated causality by performing a Mendelian randomization analysis using large-scale genome-wide association studies of psoriasis and CKD. Inverse variance-weighted (IVW) analysis was used as the primary method. RESULTS: In the observational study, 16 750 participants were included. Overall, 39 of 429 patients with psoriasis had CKD (9.1%) compared with 1481 of 16 321 without psoriasis (9.1%). In the fully adjusted model, psoriasis was not associated with CKD (OR: 0.77, 95%CI: 0.53-1.10). In the MR analysis, 36 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were selected as instrumental variables. The IVW analysis reported that genetically predicted psoriasis was associated with a higher risk of CKD (OR: 1.025, 95%CI: 1.001-1.049). After removing 2 SNPs associated with heterogeneity, the association remained (OR: 1.028, 95%CI: 1.006-1.050). CONCLUSION: Genetically predicted psoriasis was associated with a higher risk of CKD. This association may be important for clinicians to monitor kidney function and prescribe potentially nephrotoxic drugs during psoriasis management.

Overexpression of miR-92a attenuates kidney ischemia-reperfusion injury and improves kidney preservation by inhibiting MEK4/JNK1-related autophagy.

BACKGROUND: Kidney ischemia-reperfusion injury is inevitable in kidney transplantation, and is essential for primary graft dysfunction and delayed graft function. Our previous study has proved that miR-92a could ameliorate kidney ischemia-reperfusion injury, but the mechanism has not been studied. METHODS: This study conducted further research on the role of miR-92a in kidney ischemia-reperfusion injury and organ preservation. In vivo, mice models of bilateral kidney ischemia (30 min), cold preservation after ischemia (cold preservation time of 6, 12, and 24 h), and ischemia-reperfusion (reperfusion time of 24, 48, and 72 h) were established. Before or after modeling, the model mice were injected with miR-92a-agomir through the caudal vein. In vitro, the hypoxia-reoxygenation of HK-2 cells was used to simulate ischemia-reperfusion injury. RESULTS: Kidney ischemia and ischemia-reperfusion significantly damaged kidney function, decreased the expression of miR-92a, and increased apoptosis and autophagy in kidneys. miR-92a agomir tail vein injection significantly increased the expression of miR-92a in kidneys, improved kidney function, and alleviated kidney injury, and the intervention before modeling achieved a better effect than after. Moreover, miR-92a agomir significantly reduced the apoptosis and autophagy in HK-2 cells induced by hypoxia, hypoxia-reoxygenation, and rapamycin, while miR-92a antagomir had opposite effects. Furthermore, mitogen-activated protein kinase, c-Jun NH (2) terminal kinase, caspase 3, Beclin 1, and microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3B were inhibited by overexpression of miR-92a both in vivo and in vitro, which in turn reduced apoptosis and autophagy. CONCLUSIONS: Our results prove that overexpression of miR-92a attenuated kidney ischemia-reperfusion injury and improved kidney preservation, and intervention before ischemia-reperfusion provides better protection than after.

Incidence, risk factors, and clinical outcomes of HBV reactivation in non-liver solid organ transplant recipients with resolved HBV infection: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Current guidelines do not recommend routine antiviral prophylaxis to prevent hepatitis B virus (HBV) reactivation in non-liver solid organ transplant (SOT) recipients with resolved HBV infection, even in anti-hepatitis B surface antigen (anti-HBs)-negative recipients and those receiving intense immunosuppression. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to determine the incidence, risk factors, and clinical outcomes of HBV reactivation in non-liver SOT recipients. METHODS AND FINDINGS: Three databases (PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library) were systematically searched up to December 31, 2022. Clinical studies reporting HBV reactivation in non-liver SOT recipients were included. Case reports, case series, and cohort studies with a sample size of less than 10 patients were excluded. Random-effects analysis was used for all meta-analyses. We included 2,913 non-liver SOT recipients with resolved HBV infection from 16 retrospective cohort studies in the analysis. The overall HBV reactivation rate was 2.5% (76/2,913; 95% confidence interval [95% CI 1.6%, 3.6%]; I2 = 55.0%). Higher rates of reactivation were observed in recipients with negative anti-HBs (34/421; 7.8%; 95% CI [5.2%, 10.9%]; I2 = 36.0%) by pooling 6 studies, experiencing acute rejection (13/266; 5.8%; 95% CI [2.3%, 14.5%]; I2 = 63.2%) by pooling 3 studies, receiving ABO blood type-incompatible transplantation (8/111; 7.0%; 95% CI [2.9%, 12.7%]; I2 = 0%) by pooling 3 studies, receiving rituximab (10/133; 7.3%; 95% CI [3.4%, 12.6%]; I2 = 0%) by pooling 3 studies, and receiving anti-thymocyte immunoglobulin (ATG, 25/504; 4.9%; 95% CI [2.5%, 8.1%]; I2 = 49.0%) by pooling 4 studies. Among recipients with post-transplant HBV reactivation, 11.0% (7/52; 95% CI [4.0%, 20.8%]; I2 = 0.3%) developed HBV-related hepatic failure, and 11.0% (7/52; 95% CI [4.0%, 20.8%]; I2 = 0.3%) had HBV-related death. Negative anti-HBs (crude odds ratio [OR] 5.05; 95% CI [2.83, 9.00]; p < 0.001; I2 = 0%), ABO blood type-incompatible transplantation (crude OR 2.62; 95% CI [1.05, 6.04]; p = 0.040; I2 = 0%), history of acute rejection (crude OR 2.37; 95% CI [1.13, 4.97]; p = 0.022; I2 = 0%), ATG use (crude OR 3.19; 95% CI [1.48, 6.87]; p = 0.003; I2 = 0%), and rituximab use (crude OR 3.16; 95% CI [1.24, 8.06]; p = 0.016; I2 = 0%) increased the risk of reactivation. Adjusted analyses reported similar results. Limitations include moderate heterogeneity in the meta-analyses and that most studies were conducted in kidney transplant recipients. CONCLUSIONS: Non-liver SOT recipients with resolved HBV infection have a high risk of HBV-related hepatic failure and HBV-related death if HBV reactivation occurs. Potential risk factors for HBV reactivation include rituximab use, anti-thymocyte immunoglobulin use, anti-HBs negative status, acute rejection history, and ABO blood type-incompatible transplantation. Further research on monitoring and routine antiviral prophylaxis of non-liver SOT recipients at higher risk of HBV reactivation is required.

Magnesium Depletion Score is Associated with Long-Term Mortality in Chronic Kidney Diseases: A Prospective Population-Based Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: Magnesium deficiency is common in patients with chronic kidney diseases (CKD) due to restricted magnesium intake and impaired magnesium reabsorption. Based on pathophysiological risk factors influencing kidney magnesium reabsorption, a magnesium depletion score (MDS) was developed. Using MDS as a novel indicator for assessing body magnesium status, we hypothesized that it was associated with clinical prognosis. METHODS: We conducted a prospective population-based cohort study using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999-2014 to explore the impact of MDS on the clinical outcomes of CKD patients. Propensity score-matched analyses were conducted to increase comparability. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality, and the secondary outcomes were cardiovascular-cause and cancer-cause mortality. RESULTS: After propensity score matching, 3294 CKD patients were divided into 2 groups: MDS ≤ 2 (N = 1647), and MDS > 2 (N = 1647). During a median follow-up of 75 months, Kaplan-Meier analyses showed that MDS > 2 was associated with worse 5- and 10-year overall survival (78.5% vs 73.4%; 53.1% vs 43.1%, P < 0.001). After adjusting for confounding variables, MDS was found to be an independent risk factor for all-cause mortality (HR:1.34, 95% CI 1.20-1.50, P < 0.001). MDS > 2 was also associated with higher cardiovascular-cause mortality (16.2% VS 11.6%, P = 0.005). Multivariate competing risk analysis revealed that MDS > 2 was an independent risk factor (HR: 1.33, 95% CI 1.06-1.66, P = 0.012). Subgroup analyses reported that MDS > 2 increased all-cause mortality and cardiovascular-cause mortality only in patients with inadequate magnesium intake (P < 0.001, P < 0.001) but not in those with adequate intake (P = 0.068, P = 0.920). CONCLUSIONS: A magnesium depletion score > 2 was independently associated with higher long-term cardiovascular-cause and all-cause mortality in CKD patients.

Transplant outcomes of 100 cases of living-donor ABO-incompatible kidney transplantation.

BACKGROUND: Although ABO-incompatible (ABOi) kidney transplantation (KT) has been performed successfully, a standard preconditioning regimen has not been established. Based on the initial antidonor ABO antibody titers, an individualized preconditioning regimen is developed, and this study explored the efficacy and safety of the regimen. METHODS: From September 1, 2014, to September 1, 2020, we performed 1668 consecutive living-donor KTs, including 100 ABOi and 1568 ABO-compatible (ABOc) KTs. ABOi KT recipients (KTRs) with a lower antibody titer (≤1:8) were administered oral immunosuppressive drugs (OIs) before KT, while patients with a medium titer (1:16) received OIs plus antibody-removal therapy (plasma exchange/double-filtration plasmapheresis), patients with a higher titer (≥1:32) were in addition received rituximab (Rit). Competing risk analyses were conducted to estimate the cumulative incidence of infection, acute rejection (AR), graft loss, and patient death. RESULTS: After propensity score analyses, 100 ABOi KTRs and 200 matched ABOc KTRs were selected. There were no significant differences in graft and patient survival between the ABOi and ABOc groups (P  = 0.787, P  = 0.386, respectively). After using the individualized preconditioning regimen, ABOi KTRs showed a similar cumulative incidence of AR (10.0% υs . 10.5%, P  = 0.346). Among the ABOi KTRs, the Rit-free group had a similar cumulative incidence of AR ( P  = 0.714) compared to that of the Rit-treated group. Multivariate competing risk analyses revealed that a Rit-free regimen reduced the risk of infection (HR: 0.31; 95% CI: 0.12-0.78, P  = 0.013). Notably, antibody titer rebound was more common in ABOi KTRs receiving a Rit-free preconditioning regimen ( P  = 0.013) than those receiving Rit. ABOi KTRs with antibody titer rebound had a 2.72-fold risk of AR (HR: 2.72, 95% CI: 1.01-7.31, P  = 0.048). ABOi KTRs had similar serum creatinine and estimated glomerular filtration rate compared to those of ABOc KTRs after the first year. CONCLUSIONS: An individualized preconditioning regimen can achieve comparable graft and patient survival rates in ABOi KT with ABOc KT. Rit-free preconditioning effectively prevented AR without increasing the risk of infectious events in those with lower initial titers; however, antibody titer rebound should be monitored.

A CRISPR-based ultrasensitive assay detects attomolar concentrations of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in clinical samples.

CRISPR diagnostics are powerful tools for detecting nucleic acids but are generally not deployable for the detection of clinically important proteins. Here, we report an ultrasensitive CRISPR-based antibody detection (UCAD) assay that translates the detection of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies into CRISPR-based nucleic acid detection in a homogeneous solution and is 10,000 times more sensitive than the classic immunoassays. Clinical validation using serum samples collected from the general population (n = 197), demonstrates that UCAD has 100% sensitivity and 98.5% specificity. With ultrahigh sensitivity, UCAD enables the quantitative analysis of serum anti-SARS-CoV-2 levels in vaccinated kidney transplant recipients who are shown to produce "undetectable" anti-SARS-CoV-2 using standard immunoassay. Because of the high sensitivity and simplicity, we anticipate that, upon further clinical validation against large cohorts of clinical samples, UCAD will find wide applications for clinical uses in both centralized laboratories and point-of-care settings.

Evaluation of Medical Information on Male Sexual Dysfunction on Baidu Encyclopedia and Wikipedia: Comparative Study.

BACKGROUND: Sexual dysfunction is a private set of disorders that may cause stigma for patients when discussing their private problems with doctors. They might also feel reluctant to initiate a face-to-face consultation. Internet searches are gradually becoming the first choice for people with sexual dysfunction to obtain health information. Globally, Wikipedia is the most popular and consulted validated encyclopedia website in the English-speaking world. Baidu Encyclopedia is becoming the dominant source in Chinese-speaking regions; however, the objectivity and readability of the content are yet to be evaluated. OBJECTIVE: Hence, we aimed to evaluate the reliability, readability, and objectivity of male sexual dysfunction content on Wikipedia and Baidu Encyclopedia. METHODS: The Chinese Baidu Encyclopedia and English Wikipedia were investigated. All possible synonymous and derivative keywords for the most common male sexual dysfunction, erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation, and their most common complication, chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome, were screened. Two doctors evaluated the articles on Chinese Baidu Encyclopedia and English Wikipedia. The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) scoring system, DISCERN instrument, and Global Quality Score (GQS) were used to assess the quality of disease-related articles. RESULTS: The total DISCERN scores (P=.002) and JAMA scores (P=.001) for Wikipedia were significantly higher than those of Baidu Encyclopedia; there was no statistical difference between the GQS scores (P=.31) for these websites. Specifically, the DISCERN Section 1 score (P<.001) for Wikipedia was significantly higher than that of Baidu Encyclopedia, while the differences between the DISCERN Section 2 and 3 scores (P=.14 and P=.17, respectively) were minor. Furthermore, Wikipedia had a higher proportion of high total DISCERN scores (P<.001) and DISCERN Section 1 scores (P<.001) than Baidu Encyclopedia. Baidu Encyclopedia and Wikipedia both had low DISCERN Section 2 and 3 scores (P=.49 and P=.99, respectively), and most of these scores were low quality. CONCLUSIONS: Wikipedia provides more reliable, higher quality, and more objective information than Baidu Encyclopedia. Yet, there are opportunities for both platforms to vastly improve their content quality. Moreover, both sites had similar poor quality content on treatment options. Joint efforts of physicians, physician associations, medical institutions, and internet platforms are needed to provide reliable, readable, and objective knowledge about diseases.

Prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and impact on clinical outcomes after kidney transplantation: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

CONTEXT: The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency (VDD) and its impact on clinical outcomes after kidney transplant (KT) remain poorly defined. OBJECTIVES: We conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate the impact of early VDD on clinical outcomes after KT. DATA SOURCES: Electronic databases (PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and The Cochrane Library) were systematically searched for eligible publications up to April 30, 2020. DATA EXTRACTION: Relative risk was presented as hazard ratios (HRs) or odds ratios (ORs) and 95%CIs for dichotomous outcomes. Mean difference (MD) and 95%CIs were presented for continuous outcomes. RESULTS: A total of 28 studies (13 prospective and 15 retrospective) were included. VDD was common early after KT, with a prevalence of 52% (95%CI: 41%-64%) at transplant, 34% (95%CI: 17%-51%) at 3 months, and 23% (95%CI: 10%-35%) at 6 months. Early VDD was associated with higher mortality rate after KT (HR, 1.56; 95%CI: 1.32-1.84; P < 0.001). In addition, early VDD led to higher risk of bacterial infection (OR, 1.82; 95%CI: 1.40-2.36; P < 0.001), BK polyomavirus infection (OR, 2.11, 95%CI: 1.23-3.61; P = 0.006), and cytomegalovirus infection (OR, 1.69; 95%CI: 1.24-2.31; P = 0.001). Early VDD increased the risk of acute rejection as well (HR, 2.28; 95%CI: 1.57-3.30; P < 0.001). Recipients with early VDD had lower estimated glomerular filtration rates (mean difference: -5.06; 95%CI: -7.28 to 2.83 mL/min; P < 0.001). Sensitivity analyses showed good stability of the pooled results. CONCLUSION: VDD was common early after KT and associated with higher risk of death and adverse outcomes.

Nonlinear relationship between body mass index and clinical outcomes after kidney transplantation: A dose-response meta-analysis of 50 observational studies.

BACKGROUND: Exact dose-response relationship between body mass index at transplantation and clinical outcomes after kidney transplantation remained unclear, and no specific body mass index threshold and pretransplant weight loss aim were recommended for kidney transplantation candidates among transplant centers. METHODS: PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library were searched for literature published up to December 31, 2019. The two-stage, random effect meta-analysis was performed to estimate the dose-response relationship between body mass index and clinical outcomes after kidney transplantation. RESULTS: Ninety-four studies were included for qualitative assessment and 50 for dose-response meta-analyses. There was a U-shaped relationship between graft loss, patient death, and body mass index. Body mass index with the lowest risk of graft loss was 25.2 kg/m2, and preferred body mass index range was 22-28 kg/m2. Referring to a body mass index of 22 kg/m2, the risk of graft loss was 1.088, 0.981, 1.003, and 1.685 for a body mass index of 18, 24, 28, and 40 kg/m2, respectively. Body mass index with the lowest risk of patient death was 24.7 kg/m2, and preferred body mass index range was 22-27 kg/m2. Referring to a body mass index of 22 kg/m2, the patient death risk was 1.115, 0.981, 1.032, and 2.634 for a body mass index of 18, 24, 28, and 40 kg/m2, respectively. J-shaped relationships were observed between body mass index and acute rejection, delayed graft function, primary graft nonfunction, and de novo diabetes. Pair-wise comparisons showed that higher body mass index was also a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, infection, longer length of hospital stay, and lower estimated glomerular filtration rate level. CONCLUSION: Underweight and severe obesity at transplantation are associated with a significantly increased risk of graft loss and patient death. A target body mass index at kidney transplantation is 22-27 kg/m2.

Tacrolimus variability score outperforms coefficient of variation in predicting clinical outcomes of living kidney transplantation.

AIMS: Intrapatient variability (IPV) was previously defined as coefficient of variation (CV) or standard deviation of tacrolimus (Tac) exposure while none of them was easily being interpreted and translated into clinical practice after kidney transplantation. METHODS: We developed a novel Tac variability score (TVS) to evaluate IPV by calculating the frequency of clinically significant changes of Tac trough levels after kidney transplantation. Multivariate Cox proportional analyses were conducted to compare the impact of TVS and CV on transplant outcomes. RESULTS: A total of 1343 patients were divided into high TVS (>0.30) and low TVS (<0.30) groups, and low CV (<0.30) and high CV (>0.30) groups. Univariate analyses showed that high TVS (hazard ratio [HR]: 2.323, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.455-3.709) and high CV (HR: 1.606, 95%CI: 1.044-2.471) were associated with inferior graft survival. However, only TVS was an independent predictor for graft failure in multivariate analyses (HR: 1.972, 95%CI: 1.2-3.24), and the correlation maintained in high CV (P = .020) and low CV (P = .037) subgroups, while CV failed to predict graft loss in neither low (P = .387) nor high TVS (P = .600) subgroups. In addition, TVS had a higher correlation with graft survival in patients with Tac exposure within the therapeutic range and the correlation was less influenced by mean Tac trough levels. CONCLUSION: TVS is a novel measure of Tac IPV with higher correlation with graft survival and more convenience in clinical use than CV after kidney transplantation.

Early Monitoring and Subsequent Gain of Tacrolimus Time-In-Therapeutic Range May Improve Clinical Outcomes After Living Kidney Transplantation.

BACKGROUND: The early identification of recipients at high risk of graft loss is clinically relevant after kidney transplantation. The authors explored whether the earlier monitoring of tacrolimus (Tac) time-in-therapeutic range (TTR) is predictive of and a subsequent gain in TTR improves transplant outcomes. METHODS: The TTR within 3, 6, 9, and 12 months was evaluated. Multivariate Cox analyses were performed to explore when TTR was predictive of transplant outcomes. Patients were divided into 3 groups based on incremental TTR change [TTR gain (increase >10%), TTR stable (maintained within 10%), and TTR loss (decrease >10%)] and 4 groups based on predefined cutoff values [low-low (LL), low-high (LH), high-low (HL), and high-high (HH)] using 6- and 12-month TTRs. Death-censored graft loss and patient death were primary outcomes. RESULTS: Nonlinear associations were observed between 6-, 9-, and 12-month TTR and death-censored graft and patient survival rates. In multivariate analysis, every 10% increase in 6-, 9-, and 12-month TTRs was associated with reduced patient death [hazard ratio (HR): 0.83; HR: 0.68; HR: 0.61, respectively] and graft loss (HR: 0.88; HR: 0.73; HR: 0.66, respectively). A nonlinear relationship was observed between transplant outcomes and incremental changes in TTR. TTR gain and stable TTR contributed to higher graft survival (HR: 0.20; HR: 0.21) and patient survival (HR: 0.14; HR: 0.15) rates than TTR loss, whereas the former 2 had comparable outcomes. Furthermore, compared with those in the HH group, the LL and HL groups had inferior graft survival (HR: 3.33; HR: 5.17) and patient survival (HR: 5.15; HR: 8.94) rates, whereas the LH group had similar outcomes (P = 0.63, P = 0.97). Nonadherence was the main controllable risk factor for low TTR. CONCLUSIONS: The 6-month TTR identified patients at higher risk of worse outcomes. The subsequent gain of TTR may contribute to better transplant outcomes.

Effect of Donor and Recipient ABH-Secretor Status on ABO-Incompatible Living Donor Kidney Transplantation.

Introduction: ABO blood group antigens within grafts are continuously exposed to anti-A/B antibodies in the serum of recipients after ABO-incompatible (ABOi) kidney transplantation and are instrumental in antibody-mediated rejection. Some individuals secrete soluble blood group antigens into body fluids. In this study, we investigated the effect of donor and recipient secretor status on the outcomes of ABOi kidney transplantation. Methods: Data of a total of 32 patients with ABOi living donor kidney transplantation were retrospectively collected between 2014 and 2020 in West China Hospital. The genotype and phenotype of both donors and recipients were examined and evaluated with post-transplantation anti-A/B titer changes, graft function, and rejection. Results: Of the 32 recipients and 32 donors, 23 (71.9%) recipients and 27 (84.4%) donors had secretor genotypes, whereas 9 (28.1%) recipients and 5 (15.6%) donors did not. Anti-A/B titers after ABOi kidney transplantation were not significantly influenced by the secretor status of either donors or recipients. The post-transplantation serum creatinine (Scr) levels and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was better in weak- or non-secretor recipients at day 30 (Scr P = 0.047, eGFR P = 0.008), day 90 (Scr P = 0.010, eGFR P = 0.005), and month 9 (eGFR P = 0.008), and recipients from secretor donors had a lower incidence of graft rejection in the first year after ABOi transplantation (P = 0.004). Conclusions: A weak secretor status phenotype was found in both genotypes, i.e., individuals who secreted soluble antigens as well as those who did not. The recipient ABH-secretor status may have an influence on early posttransplant renal function, and the donor ABH-secretor status might affect the incidence of graft rejection.