Researchers at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in North Carolina found that a 100% survival rate among 19 patients who had double transplants of kidneys earlier rejected for having limited function. They said that this is one of the simple way by which one can solve the problem of organ donor shortage.
The results of this US short term study is to prove that it is better or similar to transplant two kidneys of limited quality than one high-functioning organ. The results were studied and presented to the US Central Surgical Association. These organs which had compromised function came from deceased donors. These organs were rejected by the centers because they had limited function.This was due to the reason that it came from children and was very small or was from older adults who had begun to lose some kidney function. Dr Robert Stratta, one of the lead researchers, said that the physician has to match this kidney with the patient who has a low risk of rejection. Adult transplant recipients were followed up for a period of 20 months. On the other hand children were followed for 10 months.
Dr Stratta said that patients who received double kidney transplants showed similar response like those with a single transplants. The results showed that excellent patient survival and kidney function using marginal kidneys were possible if both these kidneys were transplanted into a single recipient.
Mr. Raman Dhanda, a transplant surgeon at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital, told that people can manage with about half the capacity of one kidney. Statistics show that almost 6,500 people in the UK are currently waiting for an organ transplant. Hence this double transplantation procedure would be the only viable option in terms of addressing the current organ donor shortage.
