Comparison of the outcomes of the pediatric kidney transplantation between recipients below and above 15 kg: a single center retrospective study

Background The renal transplantation is the best treatment for end-stage renal disease in children. We present the findings of an analysis of our institution’s paediatric transplant outcomes comparing recipients under 15 kg, who represent this potentially higher risk group, to those above 15 kg. Methods We retrospectively identified consecutive paediatric kidney transplants from a prospectively collected database for analysis. We included all recipients under the age of 18 years at the time of transplant between 2006 and 2018 without any exclusion criteria. The primary outcome was death-censored graft survival at 1 year, 5 years and 10 years. Results 109 paediatric kidney transplants were performed in 100 children. Graft survival in the all population was 98%, 96% and 76% at 1 year, 5 years and 10 years, respectively. Recipient weight below 15 kg was not found to be a risk factor of graft loss. Overall, we found no individual factor to be statistically significantly associated with renal graft lost. The overall complication rate was 16% (18/109) with 12 early complications (11%) and 6 late ones (5%). Conclusion Kidney transplantation in children weighing < 15 kg seems safe and offers the same patient and graft survival outcomes as in other (> 15 kg) pediatric recipients with equally low complication rates.