ABO Incompatible Kidney Transplant: a path breaking procedure for non-matching blood groups, to donate kidneys
Gwalior, June 30th, 2013 - The multidisciplinary transplant team of Fortis Institute of Renal Sciences and Transplantation (FIRST) which provides state of the art treatment in field of kidney Transplantation. Fortis Flt. Lt. Rajan Dhall Hospital, Vasant Kunj, organized a press conference on ABO incompatible transplant. The hospital has successfully performed two ABO compatible surgeries and both the patients are healthy and fit.
There is an increasing prevalence of chronic kidney disease in our country. The three common causes of CKD in our country are Diabetes, Glomerulonephritis and Hypertension. There is an increasing prevalence of both Diabetes and hypertension in our country. Hence, CKD is likely to assume epidemic proportions. These patients need to be explained about the various options for management of chronic kidney diseases including dialysis and kidney transplant. Dialysis therapy can be provided locally while those who are in advanced stages of kidney failure and have a kidney donor available should be referred to tertiary case centres for a kidney transplant.
The demand for kidney transplantation is progressively growing in our country and it is important to expand the donor pool to meet the demand. Many centers are not able to accept the kidneys of the related donors due to blood group incompatibility. ABO incompatible transplant treatment makes it possible to transplant the kidney in patients even when the blood groups do not match.
According to Dr. Sanjeev Gulati, Fortis DM, Additional Director Nephrology, Fortis Flt. Lt. Rajan Dhall Hospital and Ex Prof. SGPGI Lucknow “There is a risk of rejection and losing the kidney immediately at the time of the operation in ABO incompatible transplantation. The risk of rejection after surgery applies to all transplants, but we expect this risk to be slightly higher in ABO incompatible transplants. Again it is difficult to be certain about the exact risk, but we would expect that at least 90 out of 100 of transplants would be working a year after surgery (compared with 99 out of 100 after ordinary living donation).Two latest techniques which have increased the acceptance of kidney from non-matching blood group are Immunoadsorption columns & Plasmapharesis. The plasma is filtered and the antibodies are removed (on alternate days for around 10 days) before the transplant and for 2-5 days after the transplant to avoid the rejection of the kidney by the body. Though the cost is twice that of an ordinary transplant, it’s still a better and cheaper option than to remain on dialysis.”
As per Human Organ Transplant Act, donors should be close relatives of the recipient. There is a vast gap in the number of patients awaiting transplant and the number of kidney donors’ available. Around 35% of patients have a close relative who is willing to donate a kidney however they are not able to donate the organ as the blood group is different. Donor non-availability due to the reasons cited often forces patients to remain on dialysis.
Other recent advances have been combined liver and kidney transplant for patients with both liver and kidney failure. Thus the management of chronic kidney disease requires a partnership between the family physicians, local nephrologists and the tertiary care centres so that we can optimize the care of such patients who are complex and difficult to treat. “Though expensive than normal transplant, ABO incompatible transplant offers a ray of hope and permanent solution to the patients living on Dialysis,” reiterates Dr. Gulati.
For further Information, please contact:
Rishi Mehra @ 9650493672