Transplantation proceedings
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Cardiovascular disease, malignancies, and infectious complications are major causes of morbidity and mortality of renal transplant recipients. Mortality rates vary between 16% and 40% in an intensive care unit (ICU). The aims of this study were to identify the types incidences of respiratory problems that affected renal transplant recipients admitted to the ICU during long-term follow-up thereby determining the impact of respiratory problems on mortality. ⋯ The overall mortality rate was 58.8% (20 patients). Thus, infectious and respiratory problems are the most frequent indications for admission and the most common problems during an ICU stay. The prognosis for patients who either have a respiratory problem upon admission to the ICU or develop one during the ICU stay is poor.
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Comparative Study
Comparison between transcranial color Doppler ultrasonography and angiography in the confirmation of brain death.
Cerebral blood flow tests have increasingly been advocated for the confirmation of brain death (BD). Angiography has been considered the gold standard in the diagnosis of BD but is invasive. We validated transcranial color Doppler ultrasonography (TCD) to confirm BD by comparing it to angiography. ⋯ TCD was a sensitive tool to diagnose BD, affording a reliable alternative examination to standard angiography.
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Case Reports
Extrahepatic metabolism and renal effects of sevoflurane in a case of liver transplantation.
In a case of liver transplantation, sevoflurane metabolism was studied to investigate if sevoflurane has an extrahepatic metabolism or possible nephrotoxicity in the presence of chronic liver disease. Plasma blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and creatinine and urine levels of N-acetyl glycosaminidase (NAG) and beta2 microglobulin were assessed intraoperatively and for 11 days postoperatively. ⋯ The NAG levels were greater than normal despite the peak serum inorganic fluoride concentration of 18.94 micromol/L. No impairment was observed in serum BUN or creatinine levels in these periods.
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Early arterial or portal vein thrombosis is a complications that can lead to graft loss and patient death or need of immediate retransplantation. The aim of the study was to assess the incidence, causes, treatment, and outcome of vascular thrombosis after living related donor liver transplantation (LRdLTx). Between 1999 and 2004 71 LRdLTx were performed in children aged from 6 months to 10 years. ⋯ Any risk factors of vascular thrombosis that can be controlled should be avoided after transplantation. Routine posttransplant Doppler examination should be performed at least twice a day within 7 to 14 posttransplant days. Immediate thrombectomy should be always carried out to avoid late complications and even mortality.
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There is marked interindividual variability in trough blood levels of tacrolimus (TRL) following standard dosing. TRL is a substrate for P-glycoprotein (P-gp), the product of the multidrug resistance-1 (MDR1)(ABCB1) gene. P-gp acts as a membrane efflux pump, which affects TRL absorption from the gut. ⋯ TRL daily doses were significantly lower among patients with the 3435 TT genotype at months 1 and 6. At 6 and 12 months after transplantation patients who were homozygous for the ABCB1 3435 CC showed significantly lower dose-adjusted trough TRL concentrations compared with subjects of 3435 TT and CT genotypes. Knowledge of ABCB1 genotype may be useful to adjust the optimal dose of TRL in transplant patients, thereby rapidly achieving target concentrations.