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Living donor kidney transplant

Overview

This is a surgical procedure in which a kidney from a living donor and transplanted into a recipient who is experiencing kidney failure. As one kidney is adequate to sustain a healthy life, the donor can go on to live a healthy life even after the kidney donation.

Before undergoing a living donor kidney transplant, the transplant team evaluates your overall health, verifies the donor’s health, and ensures the kidney is a suitable match for you. Living donor kidney transplants provide some benefits as compared to decreased donor kidney transplants, such as:

  • Shorter waiting time: The database and waitlist for deceased donor kidneys is typically maintained nationally. The health of the patient who requires a kidney may decline while waiting for a suitable kidney to become available
  • Can help avoid dialysis: If the patient has not yet started dialysis, transplantation can help avoid it
  • Better survival rates: Patient survival rates are usually higher after kidney transplantation
  • Scheduled transplant surgery: Deceased donor kidneys have a short window during which they must be transplanted, leading to unscheduled and urgent surgery. On the other hand, with a living donor, the transplant can be planned and scheduled ahead of time.

During a living donor kidney transplant, the donor kidney is positioned within the patient’s lower abdomen. Its blood vessels are connected to those in the lower abdomen or above one of the legs. The ureter, a tube that carries urine, is then attached from the new kidney to the bladder to enable urine flow. Typically, the patient’s non-functioning kidneys are left within the body.

  • The surgery is followed by a hospital stay of a few days to a week
  • An immune-suppressing medication regimen to prevent the immune system from rejecting the kidney is prescribed
  • Additionally, antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal medicines are provided to prevent an infection
  • The medication regimen needs to be followed carefully because skipping them for even a short period can cause the body to reject the kidney
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