Survival of Kidney Retransplant Compared With First Kidney Transplant: A Report From Southern Iran.

Objectives: Kidney retransplant is increasingly performed, but patient survival is controversial. The aim of this study was to evaluate the outcomes of patients with second kidney grafts and compare survival rates of recipients with first and second kidney transplant procedures. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study analyzing records from the Shiraz University of Medical Sciences transplant ward. Survival rates of retransplanted patients were compared with a randomly selected group of first kidney recipients. Factors related to retransplant survival were evaluated. Data were analyzed by SPSS version 16.0, and P < .05 was considered as significant. Results: This study included 200 patients with first kidney transplants and 68 patients with kidney retransplants. We found that 1-, 3-, 5-, and 7-year graft survival rates were 91.9%, 87.2% ,86.3%, and 86.3% among retransplanted patients versus 98.3%, 95.4%, 90.2%, and 88.7% among the first transplant group (P= .130). Hospital stay duration after transplant, kidney rejection rate during hospitalization, delayed graft function, and creatinine levels at discharge were significantly associated with survival in retransplanted patients (P < .05). Conclusions: Kidney retransplants can yield desirable outcomes and is the treatment of choice in patients who have lost their graft. Careful screening for risk factors should be consider for obtaining better results in second kidney transplant procedures.