IMPROVED RENAL GRAFT SURVIVAL IN TRANSFUSED UREMICS A RESULT OF A NUMBER OF INTERACTING FACTORS

Abstract

In a series of 229 first-time recipients of cadaveric renal grafts the graft survival was better for the patients that had received 4 or more units of blood, than for those patients that had never received blood; on the other hand, for the patients receiving 1 to 3 units the survival was not better. A relationship between blood transfusion and graft survival was found only for patients receiving kidneys with two or less HLA-A and B incompatibilities. Among the patients receiving 20 or more units of blood, one-half became long-term HBsAg carriers and 60% developed HLA antibodies. A larger proportion of these patients had received grafts with a good HLA-A.B match. The graft survival was better for patients that had been on regular dialysis before the transplantation than those that had not. The choice of dialysis method was also significant, the survival being better for patients that had been on peritoneal dialysis than those on hemodialysis. It would appear that blood transfusion and dialysis treatment had an additive effect on graft survival.