Journal of the American Society of Nephrology
2007 JASN IMPACT FACTOR 7.111 HOME   AUTHOR INFO   EDITORIAL BOARD   SUBSCRIBE   FEEDBACK   ALERTS   HELP 
    advanced
CURRENT ISSUE ARCHIVES JASN Express ONLINE SUBMISSION


Published ahead of print on June 1, 2005
J Am Soc Nephrol 16: 2098-2110, 2005
© 2005 American Society of Nephrology
doi: 10.1681/ASN.2004100824
This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow All Versions of this Article:
ASN.2004100824v1
16/7/2098    most recent
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Right arrow Citation Map
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Davis, C. L.
Right arrow Articles by Delmonico, F. L.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Davis, C. L.
Right arrow Articles by Delmonico, F. L.

Disease of the Month

Living-Donor Kidney Transplantation: A Review of the Current Practices for the Live Donor

Connie L. Davis* and Francis L. Delmonico{dagger}

* Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington; and {dagger} Department of Surgery, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts

Address correspondence to: Dr. Connie L. Davis, University of Washington, Transplantation Services, Box 356174, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, WA, 98195. Phone: 206-598-6079; Fax: 206-598-2208; E-mail: cdavis{at}u.washington.edu

The first successful living-donor kidney transplant was performed 50 yr ago. Since then, in a relatively brief period of medical history, living kidney transplantation has become the preferred treatment for those with ESRD. Organ replacement from either a live or a deceased donor is preferable to dialysis therapy because transplantation provides a better quality of life and improved survival. The advantages of live versus deceased donor transplantation now are readily apparent as it affords earlier transplantation and the best long-term survival. Live kidney donation has also been fostered by the technical advance of laparoscopic nephrectomy and immunologic maneuvers that can overcome biologic obstacles such as HLA disparity and ABO or cross-match incompatibility. Congressional legislation has provided an important model to remove financial disincentives to being a live donor. Federal employees now are afforded paid leave and coverage for travel expenses. Candidates for renal transplantation are aware of these developments, and they have become less hesitant to ask family members, spouses, or friends to become live kidney donors. Living donation as practiced for the past 50 yr has been safe with minimal immediate and long-term risk for the donor. However, the future experience may not be the same as our society is becoming increasingly obese and developing associated health problems. In this environment, predicting medical futures is less precise than in the past. Even so, isolated abnormalities such as obesity and in some instances hypertension are no longer considered absolute contraindications to donation. These and other medical risks bring additional responsibility in such circumstances to track the unknown consequences of a live-donor nephrectomy.




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 J. Med. EthicsHome page
D Steinberg and E A Pomfret
A novel boundary issue: should a patient be an organ donor for their physician?
J. Med. Ethics, November 1, 2008; 34(11): 772 - 774.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Nephrol Dial TransplantHome page
A. M. Parekh, E. J. Gordon, A. X. Garg, A. D. Waterman, S. Kulkarni, and C. R. Parikh
Living kidney donor informed consent practices vary between US and non-US centers
Nephrol. Dial. Transplant., October 1, 2008; 23(10): 3316 - 3324.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 PediatricsHome page
L. F. Ross, J. R. Thistlethwaite Jr, and and the Committee on Bioethics
Minors as Living Solid-Organ Donors
Pediatrics, August 1, 2008; 122(2): 454 - 461.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J. Med. EthicsHome page
W. Glannon
Underestimating the risk in living kidney donation
J. Med. Ethics, March 1, 2008; 34(3): 127 - 128.
[Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 CJASNHome page
P. P. Reese, A. L. Caplan, A. S. Kesselheim, and R. D. Bloom
Creating a Medical, Ethical, and Legal Framework for Complex Living Kidney Donors
Clin. J. Am. Soc. Nephrol., November 1, 2006; 1(6): 1148 - 1153.
[Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Nephrol Dial TransplantHome page
J. R. Rodrigue, M. R. Widows, R. Guenther, R. C. Newman, B. Kaplan, and R. J. Howard
The expectancies of living kidney donors: do they differ as a function of relational status and gender?
Nephrol. Dial. Transplant., June 1, 2006; 21(6): 1682 - 1688.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 HypertensionHome page
R. D. Toto
Pressure, Waves, and Kidney Outcomes in Kidney Transplant Donors and Recipients
Hypertension, February 1, 2006; 47(2): 141 - 142.
[Full Text] [PDF]


HOME CURRENT ISSUE ARCHIVES JASN Express ONLINE SUBMISSION AUTHOR INFO
EDITORIAL BOARD SUBSCRIBE FEEDBACK ALERTS HELP

Copyright © 2008 by the American Society of Nephrology. Online ISSN: 1533-3450 Print ISSN: 1046-6673