Toxoplasma-Positive Kidney Donors No Longer Shunned! Relief for Transplant Patients

Toxoplasma-infected kidney donors pose no risk to transplant recipients as per a study; hope for increased donor availability and reduced waiting time.

The availability of donor kidneys can be enhanced! This is the outcome of a recent investigation conducted by UC Davis Health.

Transplant recipients who are given kidneys infected with the toxoplasma parasite experience similar outcomes as those recipients who receive organs free from toxoplasma infection. Despite the ongoing apprehensions, recipients of kidneys from donors who tested positive for toxoplasma antibodies (TPDs) exhibited almost similar rates of mortality and organ rejection. This study was published in Transplant International ().

About Transplantation
Since the early times, the novel idea of transplanting tissues and other body parts from one organism to the other has captured the imagination of successive generations.

‘Did You Know?
Toxoplasmosis is an infection caused by a parasite known as Toxoplasma gondii. It is the primary cause of deaths associated with foodborne illnesses in the United States. #toxoplasma #kidneytransplant #medindia’

“Organs from donors who were positive for toxoplasma did just as well as organs from those who were negative, both for survival of the patients and survival of the kidneys,” said Lavjay Butani, chief of pediatric nephrology. He co-authored the paper with Daniel Tancredi, professor of pediatrics. “This is quite encouraging.”

Differences in Approach Amongst the Centers

Toxoplasma is a common parasite that usually does not harm healthy individuals. However, those with weak immune systems, like kidney transplant recipients, are at higher risk. Toxoplasmosis has a potential to be transmitted via the transplanted kidney, potentially reactivating a dormant infection in the kidney recipient.

There is significant inconsistency among transplant centers regarding the acceptance of TPD kidneys, with some centers accepting them while others choose to reject them.

Toxoplasmosis - Introduction & Risk factors
Brief overview of a common disease called Toxoplasmosis and its risks in human population

“We conducted this study because, about a year ago, there was a positive donor and the team did not want to use that kidney for one of our pediatric patients, so we didn’t accept it,” Butani said. “But we realized, we just didn’t have the data to know if that was the correct decision.”

Comparing Rejection Rates and Graft Failure Between the Two Types of Donors

The research evaluated 51,000 transplant cases sourced from the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network database. Among these, 4,300 were classified as TPD. The findings showed that the rates of rejection and graft failure were identical at 5%, for both TPD and non-TPD kidneys. Other metrics showed comparable results, suggesting that TPD kidneys did not present any extra risk.