Kidneys for Transplant Function Earlier and Last Longer When Preserved in a Machine Compared to the Traditional ...( GRONINGEN The Netherlands Dec. 31 /- ...)

GRONINGEN, The Netherlands, Dec. 31 /PRNewswire/ -- Results from a landmark trial published today in the New England Journal of Medicine, show that in transplanted kidneys preserved and transported in a specially designed machine (LifePort Kidney Transporter) the odds for experiencing a delay in recovery of kidney function are 43% lower, and that these kidneys are 48% less likely to fail within a year compared to those stored in the traditional box of ice (cold storage).(1) The study was the first randomised, prospective trial to compare these two methods of preservation.

Depending on the type of deceased donor,* 15¿50 percent of transplanted kidneys do not function immediately following transplantation and many patients will require dialysis treatments for a certain period after transplantation.(2,3,4) As a result, these kidneys have an increased risk of rejection (3) and survival of the kidney graft may be compromised. This in turn will put pressure on the already long transplant waiting lists.(3,4)

"This is a truly important finding for the thousands of people on transplant waiting lists around the world", said Rutger Ploeg, coordinating principal investigator for the trial and Professor of Transplant Surgery at the University Medical Center Groningen, The Netherlands. "The ongoing challenges we face today are a global shortage of organs for transplantation and that a growing number of the organs available for transplantation are often from older donors or from people with more complex medical conditions. Evidence tells us that these kidneys may not work as well immediately post transplantation and as a result may not last as long. This trial shows us that, regardless of the type of donor, by using machine preservation we can ensure that there will be more kidneys available for transplantation and that they will be in better health."

Cyril Moers, lead author and clinical research trainee at the Universit
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